The Irresistible Charm of Adrian Ivashkov
by CherrySlushLover
Summary: Sydney is someone who is responsible, strong, and definitely not a social butterfly. Adrian Ivashkov is the complete opposite; he's a rebellious prince, determined to defy his father's plans for him. When their worlds collide, they are stunned at their immediate connection. But when Sydney doesn't know the full truth, will she fall for The Irresistable Charm of Adrian Ivashkov? AU.
1. Chapter 1: The Party Experience

**A/N: So, new story for everyone! I'm not really sure if this story is going to be continued, so if you like it please let me know if I should carry on writing it! :D**

**This idea just suddenly appeared in my head whilst I was trying to concentrate in my maths lesson, and I haven't been able to get it out! I just had to write it! :)**

**The story line for this story probably isn't really evident from this chapter, but it sure was fun to write!**

**Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything!**

I tried to concentrate on the homework assignment that my tutor had set me, but I really wasn't getting anywhere. The argument between Zoe and my mum was getting too loud; there was no way I would be able to concentrate on it unless I went to my room. Resigned, I packed my things back into my bag neatly and stood to go directly to my room. I definitely wasn't going to get into an argument that even caused my mum to get angry. That was usually my father's job.

But apparently, there was no getting out of it. As soon as Zoe noticed me, she dragged me into the room and asked me abruptly, "Sydney. Am I or am I not only old enough to go to a party?"

"I guess you can, if there are adults around," I replied, puzzled. I didn't know that Zoe was into parties- this was the first time I had ever heard her ask to go to one.

Zoe punched the air triumphantly. "See, even Sydney thinks that I can go!"

I frowned. What did she mean by 'even Sydney'? I wasn't that uptight! Just as I was about to remark on it, my mum interrupted.

"No she didn't, Zoe! She said you could go if you had adult supervision. And I highly doubt that there will be adults at this party!"

"Yes there will! There are always adults at parties when you're fifteen! Aren't there Sydney?"

So, first she thought that I was uptight, and now she wanted me to back her up? I could see how much she wanted to go, but like mum said, she was only fifteen. "I'm sorry Zoe, but I don't think it's likely that there will be," I said, as gently as I could.

Zoe's face fell and she almost looked like she was about to cry. She was really that desperate to go. "How would you know anyway? You've never even been to a party that isn't a family gathering. I wonder why that is! Oh yeah, you have no friends!"

The sympathy I had been feeling for her immediately vanished to be replaced by anger and a little hurt that she thought of me like this. "I've never been to school Zoe and dad barely lets me out! You're lucky you actually get to go out!"

Zoe stared at me, shocked into silence by my sudden outburst. It was my mum who broke the staring competition by saying, "Well, I know a way to resolve this," she chirped, clearly trying to shatter the tension. "Sydney, you can take Zoe to the party! That way, Zoe can go and you can experience what it's like! All sorted."

What was she thinking! I wasn't going to go to a party! It was just not my scene- and I would end up making a fool of myself because of my 'inexperience' with what parties were like.

"What?" Zoe shrieked. "Mum, you can't! I'll be the laughing stock of my school!"

I was actually surprised that she hadn't stomped her foot yet. She had changed so much recently; it was like I didn't even know her anymore. She didn't even consider that I was just as unhappy with this situation as her, despite what I said earlier. It wasn't that I didn't want to go; it was just a little too late to go to my first party at the age of eighteen. I was sure I would be the laughing stock, not Zoe.

But obviously I didn't say any of that, because I just didn't want to cause anymore complications. Since Keith, it felt like even a blunt knife could cut the atmosphere in this house. So instead, I said, "Mum's right. That's the only way you're going to be able to go to the party and it's going to be your only offer. So take it or leave it."

'Please leave it,' I begged her silently.

"Fine," she huffed.

I groaned inwardly, I think she had some sort of wish to make my life hell the way she had been behaving the past few days.

"I'm going to get ready. Change out of your work clothes Sydney; you'll embarrass me as soon as we walk in!" With those words, she ran off gaily up the stairs.

"These _are _my normal clothes." I complained quietly. My mum heard though and sighed.

"Get changed Sydney. She's right. You can't wear that to a party." She added, after surveying my clothes closely.

"OK mum." I didn't want to get dressed, but I knew there was no point in arguing.

I got ready in record time, mainly due to Zoe's constant nagging to hurry up through the door. After giving my outfit a final glance, I decided it would do and walked out… to meet a suddenly fuming Zoe.

"Sydney," she whined. "You look better than me."

I laughed at her bizarre statement. "Zoe, I'm wearing jeans and an old shirtdress. I would hardly call it nice."

"But you make it look so naturally beautiful." She said, pulling my hand so we could start going, in spite of her complaining. Going to the party had really cheered her up and she didn't seem to hate as much as she recently had started to act like.

Her mood was infectious and I soon found myself slightly looking forward to my first ever social party.

After my mum finally convinced my dad to let me go, we rushed outside and inhaled the fresh air of freedom. Well, that's what Zoe said anyway. Literally.

She said, "Sydney, smell the fresh scent of freedom."

She laughed uproariously when I asked if there was something wrong with her.

My first view of the party was not very… nice. The first person I saw was holding the hair up of a girl who was vomiting into a hydrangea bush. I shuddered slightly and followed Zoe inside. My excitement was fading quickly, but I didn't want to seem like I was capable of having no fun. Zoe clearly assumed fun and I didn't mix, and I was going to prove her wrong.

"I've found my friends, Sydney!" she shouted over the blaring music. "I'll see you later, Ok?"

"Ok!"

"Just mingle!"

Mingle. Ok, I could do this. I tried to ignore the scent of sweat mixed with various perfumes, but it was unfortunately impossible. Turning right, I saw a staircase leading up which I immediately went up. It looked a lot quieter up there.

Just as I started to open a door, an amused voice from behind me said, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

I spun to find a tall, handsome guy with startlingly green eyes looking down at me. I wasn't short, but standing next to him, I suddenly felt like I should have worn heels. He towered over me by at least six inches; he had to be at least a couple of inches over 6ft.

Confused by his statement and annoyed at his arrogant attitude, I asked sharply, "Why?"

"There are probably _things _going in there that are too 'mature' for you. But you're welcome to go in if you want!" he said, a mischievous spark in his eye.

"No thanks." I replied, embarrassed that I hadn't thought before acting.

He threw back the drink in his hand, and offered it to me. "Want some?"

"No thanks. I don't drink." I said politely. I was silently apologising for my earlier brusque tone.

"And you think I drink too much," he said emotionlessly, like he already knew the answer. "Don't worry, I know." The pain behind his words was evident in his eyes, and I was shocked to find that I actually wanted to comfort him. But obviously, that was ridiculous.

"No, I wasn't thinking that actually."

"You weren't?"

"Jet!" shrieked a high-pitched voice from below.

"I'm wanted. I'll see you around." He turned and walked back down the stairs, turning once to just wink at me.

Arrogant idiot. Did he think I was going to run after him just because he winked at me? I couldn't believe I had actually felt sorry for him. But he had looked so… lost. I decided to stop thinking about him in the instant I started arguing with the voice in my head and decided to go outside instead. At least I could breathe there.

I sat on the edge of the porch and sat there, trying to ignore the banging music behind me and the sound of people vomiting… and other things.

Someone suddenly touched my shoulder and I nearly fell off the porch. "Sorry," said a dark-haired girl, whom I thought I recognised. "It's just… Zoe needs you."

My initial annoyance faded and I immediately got up, racing back into the house. I followed the girl into the sitting-room where Zoe was obviously already off her head. She reached for the glass that some guy (who looked like he was thirty) was giving to her.

"Get off her!" I pushed the sleaze away from her and grabbed the cup from Zoe. The dark-haired girl, whose name I still couldn't remember, attempted to lift Zoe up and I quickly ran over to assist her.

But as soon as she was up, Zoe shoved me and I stumbled and dropped the drink…

All over the emerald-eyed stranger I had met before.

**Did you like it? Should I continue? I am new to this, but I honestly don't mind criticism! I take any advice that can make me a better writer! :D**

**I honestly hope that you like it and it wasn't a waste of your time!**

**The next chapter will be a lot longer; iwa sgoing to make this one longer, but I really loved this ending!**

**See you next chapter… hopefully!**

**xxx**


	2. Chapter 2: Conflicting emotions

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to SageWinter; I loved your review and I'm glad you like it. I've been writing fanfics since the the 21st of January?! ;D**

**Thank you to my fourteen reviewers so far; you have convinced me to carry on with this story… I hope this chapter lives up to expectations!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, just the plot.**

Jet's (I think that's what his name was) shirt was soaked in vodka and his shirt was clinging to his every muscle. I started apologising profusely and ran to grab some tissues to mop up the spill. Zoe had knocked over a few beer cans in her attempt to push me. I grabbed several tissues from a bemused stranger and gallantly approached Jet to give him the tissues. He looked seriously angry and I started my apologies again.

"I'm really sorry, it wasn't intentional. I will pay for any damage; send me the dry cleaning bill."

Jet smirked at me. "The only problem with this is that some good drink went to waste."

I sighed and proceeded to wipe the floor. "I really am sorry; my sister Zoe…" I looked around to point her out.

I couldn't see her. My anxiety growing, I stood up immediately and located her dark-haired friend almost immediately on the stairs. "Do you know where Zoe's gone?"

She pointed upstairs, physically shaking. "I couldn't stop her and they wouldn't let me through."

Remembering Jet's earlier comment, I rushed upstairs, trying desperately to push past a few burly guys that stood at the top unmoving.

"Move now," said an authoritive voice from behind me.

It was Jet. I didn't know how I could tell without even turning around, but I knew, without a doubt, that he had followed to assist me. Not that I needed his help.

Ok, maybe I needed his help to get through. The men immediately moved out of my way and I rushed into the first room. Two girls were there, and they sprang apart. I was disgusted at their apparent lack of decency, but glad it wasn't Zoe in there. I moved to the next room, which contained a girl retching out her insides whilst drinking from an opaque bottle. I almost pointed out that that wasn't really going to help her cause, but knew I had more pressing matters to deal with.

The next room revealed a man clearly trying to cop a feel of a girl, who undoubtedly wanted to be anywhere else but there.

Oh my goodness! "Zoe! Get your hands off her!"

I ran forward and pulled her away from him.

Jet dealt with the rest. By that I mean, he grabbed the sleaze, pulled him off the bed and punched him. Hard. Several times. And I didn't even care.

I looked at him wordlessly.

"Let's just say that I know him. I'll deal with this dickhead. Get your sister out of here." He said.

I didn't bother arguing and pulled a frozen Zoe out of the room. As soon as she was in the passage, she said quietly, "Take me home please Sydney."

I climbed into Latte after making sure she was safely in the back seat, with her seatbelt around her. She didn't say anything until I had pulled into our driveway.

"I'm sorry Sydney." And then she burst into tears. I put my arm around her awkwardly.

"It wasn't your fault. It was his fault. You couldn't have stopped him."

"I thought… Carly!"

I understood immediately as to what she was talking about and my mood instantly plummeted. "Don't talk about him. I mean, her." I corrected myself quickly.

She didn't notice my slip-up, which almost made me glad of her current state. Almost.

I rubbed her back and tried to smile comfortingly. Feelings weren't really my strong point. Give me algebra any day. "Let's get you some water. You'll probably have a horrible headache and hangover tomorrow. But you'll be alright."

She gasped suddenly and frantically searched her pockets.

"My phone, I left it."

I frowned. She was seriously that concerned about her phone? And then she put her head in her hands. "Everyone's going to be going on about this tomorrow." she sobbed quietly, her tears streaking her mascara. "I can't believe I was that stupid!"

"I don't think a lot of people saw you; you were upstairs. Everyone else was downstairs, getting drunk," I said truthfully.

I wanted to know who the man was, but I wasn't that insensitive. Realising it was time to go back inside, I slowly withdrew my arm from around her and pulled her up. She leaned on me heavily, and looked up at me with those amber eyes that were identical to mine. The only difference was that hers were red and sore and outlined with black... and mine weren't.

"Are you going to tell mum?"

I sighed. I knew she was going to ask that, but knew she wouldn't like the answer I had to offer. "Yes. She has to know. But I'll exclude certain details that aren't necessary for her to know." I added at the end. That was the best I could give her.

I opened the door slowly, not knowing whether mum was still awake. She was. And she wanted to know exactly what my first party had been like. Seeing Zoe's face answered a lot of the questions she had, but it started an entire line of new ones.

"What happened to you, Zoe? I told you not to go, and look what happened! It's good your dad's not here! Sydney, what's happened? Why didn't you keep an eye on her?"

I immediately opened my mouth to protest at that last accusation, but it was apparently unnecessary.

"It wasn't her fault, mum. It was mine. I told her to go because I wanted to show off in front of my friends. And I feel horrible, and I promise I won't ever do it again! I've learned my lesson!" Zoe wailed, throwing herself into mum's arms.

She didn't pause at all during her mini speech, and mum obviously realised the extent of her despair and guilt; she just hugged her back.

I was angry that I got blamed whenever someone else did something wrong, but it had been my responsibility to take care of Zoe. This was all my fault. I retreated silently into my room where I was free to dwell in my own thoughts and not feel guilty every time I saw Zoe. Just remembering what had happened in that room made me want to throw up or rewind time so I could rectify my mistakes. But obviously that was impossible, so I was going to have to make do with trying to rectify my mistake in whatever way possible.

But first, I had to find Jet and thank him for helping out. I remembered the way I had acted towards him at first and mentally kicked myself. I seriously had some amends to make, but first I had to find him.

That wasn't going to be necessary.

When I came down the next day, he was sat in my sitting room, in my seat, sipping a hot chocolate.

I had come down quite late today, compared to my usual standards. When my alarm clock had gone off at 7:00 sharp, I _had_ woken up, but just didn't feel up to listening to my father rebuke me or my mum's disappointed looks. I wasn't actually sure if my dad knew anything yet, and I also didn't know the extent of what mum knew either; when I had gone back down yesterday, she had been sat on the sofa with Zoe watching a chick-flick. She had whispered for me to go back to sleep.

I didn't ever remember me doing that with my mum; when we had, my father had interrupted, saying that I needed to concentrate on my studies, not relax all the time. I had fumed silently for a day before I realised that wasn't going to change anything.

Back to Jet.

He smiled lazily when I walked in, but switched it to a look of concern as soon as his gaze returned to Zoe, who was sat opposite him. She looked faintly awed. I sighed, exasperated. He _was_ good-looking, but there was no need to go crazy. Okay, he was_ really_ good looking. But still, that was no excuse.

"I came to return Zoe's phone." he said. "She forgot it, and I thought she would probably miss it."

I had no idea why he was explaining his actions to me, but I was grateful. "Thank you. Not just for returning the phone, but everything else too."

He nodded slightly, and didn't do anything else that would draw any sort of attention to him. I grew confused until he inclined his head slightly in mum's direction.

Oh.

I was quietly mortified by my foolishness but didn't let anyone else know that. And since when did Jet know more about my family than I did?

"I wasn't 'probably going to miss it!' I am so happy you returned it; I might have died without it!" Zoe yelped.

Jet grinned at Zoe's enthusiasm at being reunited with her phone, and he looked slightly relieved. I frowned. How did I even know that? His face was like a mask, his only emotions visible in those green eyes.

"Wait, am I missing something here? Why are you thanking Jet for?" Mum said, turning to me, her brow furrowing.

Oh no. I sucked at lying. Just as I was about to ruin everything for myself, Jet calmly intervened and said, "It was nothing, Mrs Sage. I just stopped Zoe from doing something she obviously didn't want to do."

I stared at him, amazed. He had lied through his teeth, yet what he said wasn't a lie. It was the truth, just half-concealed.

I held my breath to see if it had worked. Mum's face cleared of all suspicion; she obviously thought that Jet was referring to the drinking.

"I'm going to get a coffee. Anyone want anything?" I wasn't just going to get away from this stranger who baffled me more than anyone I had ever met in my life; I actually did want a coffee.

"Actually, Miss Sage's, I'll take your leave now. I've got to get going and if you don't mind," he said, looking at me, "Can I speak to you?"

Why did he want to speak to me for? "Of course. I'll be back in a bit mum."

"Take as long as you need." she said, winking when she thought Jet wasn't looking.

I rolled my eyes at her, knowing she should know better. Her grin just widened. I couldn't help but smile slightly.

I followed Jet out, smoothing out the creases in my shirt.

"Stop smoothing out the creases in your shirt. There are none. Unless you want to show me the figure that's hiding under there." He smirked.

I immediately stopped and glared at him. He met my gaze steadily and then he suddenly grew serious. "Take care of Zoe. She's acting like she's alright but I don't think she is. She doesn't want you to feel guilty." He frowned. "But you shouldn't feel guilty, it wasn't your fault. He added, almost as an afterthought.

"I do take care of her," I replied angrily. "But it _was_ my fault. And how do you even know all of that?"

"Every bad thing that happens to someone is not your fault, no matter what people say. Anyway, every time you were talking, Zoe kept looking at your face and then she looked away, forcing a smile. She obviously doesn't want you to know that she's upset."

Following his trail of thought, I grew amazed at his insight into reading people's emotions. I had never been able to do that, yet some people called me intelligent.

"Fine. Thank you again though." I wouldn't have been able to help her if it wasn't for you; I would've probably ended up in the same position as her, I said silently.

Jet looked at me like he knew exactly what I was thinking but didn't comment, for which I was grateful.

"I'll see you around then… Sage." He smirked.

I frowned at my apparently new nickname and replied, rather puzzled, "You too Jet."

His smirk grew even more pronounced after I spoke, whilst my_ irritation_ with him grew even more pronounced. And he knew that he was the reason of my discomfort and revelled in that fact.

I walked past him without a backwards glance and climbed straight into Latte. It was a shame I couldn't speed away like in the movies. But life wasn't a movie.

And even though I prayed that I would never have to see Jet again, I did.

Maybe because his name wasn't even Jet.

**I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Is it weird that I get happy writing Adrian's lines and laugh at them too? ;D**

**I think I know where I'm going with this story, and I really like writing it. I hope you enjoy the twist too! :D**

**There's a huge twist coming up!**

**And she still thinks he's called Jet!**

**What do you guys think of Chace Crawford as Adrian? The image for this story?**

**Until next time…**

**xxx**


	3. Chapter 3: Coffee, Hangovers and Jet

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to hopperivashkinator for your lovely review. I love all your ideas and I really loved your enthusiasm for my story! And for loving the plot I have for this story... thank you for being so helpful too! XD**

** Check out her story re-education by the way, it is really good and unique. It's totally different to other stories about re-education!:) Please?**

**Big twist coming up-right at the end though.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot!**

I drank my coffee quickly, causing me to scald my tongue. That showed me for being so greedy. I texted Zoe to ensure that she was okay and to ask if she wanted anything. She decided immediately on a sticky toffee pudding with custard, not ice cream, which I promptly ordered. Despite her acting generally normal, Jet's words had stuck in my head. She was not all right, but I had no idea how to make her feel better. It was something that she would probably never get over. Carly's face materialised in my head, her eyes sore, her voice pleading. I pushed the terrifying image away and instead concentrated on the mystery that was otherwise known as Jet.

I, of course, firstly had to think of what a strange and silly name it was. It didn't suit him at all. I couldn't believe that he had actually had the audacity to question me and tell me that I had to take care of Zoe. As though I didn't know! I appreciated his genuine concern for her wellbeing and all the help he had given me without being asked too, but he barely knew Zoe-or me, for that matter. He had absolutely no right to tell me what to do! Everything that had happened was my fault, and he had no right to try to convince me otherwise. A voice inside my head told me that I was being stupid and irrational, but I had no idea why I was so angry. Or if I really was angry. He had just been trying to do the right thing.

I unwillingly remembered the way his mouth had twitched into a smirk when he was teasing me, the way the Sun had highlighted the chestnut glints in his perfectly styled hair.

_Sydney, get a hold of youself. He is out of your league and that smirk is infuriating_.

I sighed and looked around instead, inspecting my surroundings. I had lived in Utah all my life and this coffee shop was the central point of it all. I couldn't wait to explore the world and all its mysteries, but with the way things were at the moment, there was still a while yet to go for that to actually happen. Great.

I admired the way Carly had managed to escape to college and then university, and wished that I would soon be able to muster up the courage to tell my dad that I wanted to further my education too. He took enormous pride in the fact that I was home schooled, and not normal like every other child because of this, and of course, it had all been his idea. Anything that ruined my life was always his idea. He never took pride in my perfect grades though, which was something I was going to try to do, someday. Make him proud of me.

That would probably take a while too though.

My phone chimed; it was a message from an unknown number.

_Hey Sage. Miss me? A x_

Curiosity getting the better of me, I punched in a reply, ensuring that I didn't reveal any extra information about myself. I hardly got social calls, because I rarely went out for recreational purposes, so this was definitely something new to me. Seeing as the person already knew my surname, I guessed they knew a bit about me, but not my first name, which was confusing and a little frustrating.

_Who is this?_

The reply was almost instant.

_Sorry, I thought you would recognise me by my sheer awesomeness that is so great that it radiated through the text. If you didn't realise due to some massive fault, it's Jet_. _A x_

I frowned. At least he didn't abbreviate any of his words. I nearly choked when some people did that. I shuddered just thinking at how the English language had been corrupted. His egotistical words nearly had the same effect though. Thank goodness he didn't actually believe that. Or did he? No, I decided. No one was that conceited. Obviously, I didn't say any of my thoughts on that particular subject, and instead asked,

_So why did you sign off the message with an A?_

His reply was a lot slower this time.

_For awesome._

I pinched the bridge of my nose and decided that I most definitely needed another coffee, I was getting a headache. Grabbing another latte for myself amd Zoe's order in one hand, I slipped my phone in my pocket, exchanging it for my car keys . Latte (my Subaru) had been a 'gift' from Keith, because he was so 'nice'. More like the devil's spawn, I thought dryly. Every word that was used to describe something good couldn't even be mentioned in the same sentence as Keith; it was that much of an insult. To the words.

I drove home speedily, not really revelling in the freedom of having my own car, like I normally did. I obviously appreciated the smooth transition between gears and even the way the I could switch channels on the radio using just the button on the steering wheel. It was extremely handy when I needed to flick through the various news channels. It was always better to be safe than sorry, a principle that I believed in strongly. But I drove quickly, impatiently. I didn't want my latte to go cold and I also wanted to know how Zoe was getting on, even though it had been just over an hour since I had seen her.

Just as I was exiting Latte, my phone buzzed again, reminding me that I still hadn't replied to Jet's earlier message. But how could I reply to something so obnoxious? Something that I had thought about earlier suddenly occured to me.

_How did you get my number?_

_Zoe. She thinks you need to get out more. I don't disagree._

I noticed he had stopped signing off with A for 'awesome'. I would've smiled if I wasn't so mortified, so I groaned instead. Now Zoe was trying to sort out my love life?

She was probably feeling bad for snapping at me yesterday. She had nothing to be sorry for though; it was me who needed to make amends for letting things go so far yesterday.

I sighed. Jet was right, but although I wanted to believe yesterday wasn't my fault, I knew I would feel guilty about it for the rest of my life. Even if I had got there in time.

Thanks to Jet.

I walked into the living room to meet Zoe in pretty much the same position as she had been in earlier. She was slouching on the sette now though, presumably because mum had set off for work. I smiled and started talking cheerily. Hopefully, she wouldn't detect the false enthusiam in my voice.

"Hi Zoe. I've got your pudding. Custard, not ice cream."

I didn't mention any of the calories or pointless grams of fat that was in her pudding, seeing as it wasn't her that had an issue with their weight; it was me.

"Is dad not back yet?" I asked. I hadn't actually talked to him since the incident yesterday.

"No, he didn't even come home last night, he was busy with some work at the office like he usually is," she said bitterly, but then she suddenly brightened and sat up. "He's taking me and mum out to a restaurant tonight. He said you had some assignments to still complete so you couldn't come."

I had finished all of my set homework as soon as I had received it and added some extra detail yesterday too when I had been fretting over what had happened. But she didn't need to know that. So instead I asked a question that had been gnawing at me since I had left the car with a drunk Zoe yesterday.

"Does dad know about the... about what happened?" I said quietly.

She threw the blanket back over her and shook her head, clearly relieved. "No, mum said as long as I've learnt my lesson and learnt from my mistakes-which I'm sure is the same thing-he doesn't need to know. I am never going to something like that ever again Sydney. I swear." She finished earnestly.

"I know Zoe. I know. How are you feeling in general?"

She grimaced and rolled her eyes."Brilliant! Horrible, more like. I'm not complaining since it is my fault that I'm in this position in the first place. I ought to be punished," she suddenly grinned. "You're rubbing off on me Sydney, I'm even starting to talk like you!"

"Is that a bad thing? Anyway, I think I've got an idea," I said, rubbing my hands together like an evil genius.

It worked; Zoe laughed.

I texted Jet.

_Know any good cures for a hangover?_

Texting him brought up his earlier message and I turned to Zoe questioningly.

"You and Jet talked about me-and, I quote, how I need to get out more?"

She grinned mischievously.

"Well, he is good looking..." she trailed off.

I rolled my eyes but even I had to admit that the combination of the carefully styled to look messy hair and those emerald eyes were- dangerously alluring. You could forget what you were thinking about with those eyes and that was something that I would hate to happen to me. Or would I?

"He's not too old for me, I guess." Zoe said innocently.

"No way Zoe. He's way too old for you!" I shrieked.

"But he's just perfect for you." She slyly added.

I sighed and wondered why my stomach suddenly felt strange-I had never gotten this feeling before.

I checked my phone; Jet had written,

_The perfect cure._ I'll _come down and give it myself, seeing_ as you _miss me so much._ _x_

_Yeah,_ _in your dreams._ I wrote back.

Wait, had I just wrote that? It almost sounded like I was flirting! I hastily started to delete the message, when Zoe (who had been reading the message from behind me) snatched the phone out of my hands. I twisted around and grabbed the phone off her but she waved it victoriously over her head.

The screen read, _'message delivered'._

I groaned and shoved my face into a pillow. Why was this happening to me? It didn't really help that a part of me was looking forward to seeing him again.

What would he think of me?

**Adrian's POV**

So Sage needed a cure for a hangover? It was probably for Zoe but I couldn't help but tease Sage. I winked at the waitress who nearly fell over in her enthusiasm to serve me. I smirked at the effect I had on her. Only Sage hadn't succumbed to my obvious charms on our first meeting. Unfortunately, that only increased the mystery about her. I threw back my drink and made to exit, but the waitress had grabbed my arm and started to scribble something on my hand.

Digits.

Her phone number.

It was a good thing no one knew who I was here, otherwise it would be almost impossible for me to move. But I wasn't entirely sure if that was necessarily a bad thing yet. They gave me attention; something I never had at home.

Obviously, when your father was king, nothing was ever going to be good enough for him. I needed to learn that.

Of course, it was only going to be a matter of days before I would be found by 'his royal highness' royal subjects' soon. More like royal pain in the ass. And his loyal subjects could continue licking it for all I cared. I just wished they didn't have to include me. I threw my most charming grin back at the waitress whose name I had forgotten, and walked out.

My phone vibrated, signalling that Sage had texted me. Well, I hoped it was Sage.

_Yeah, in your dreams._

I ogled at the screen. What? She had actually wrote that?

'Not bad Adrian, maybe she's falling for your charms too,' I thought to myself.

Even as I thought it, I knew that that was regrettably highly unlikely. I had a feeling Zoe had something to do with this. Still grinning like a maniac, I opened my rented car door (to avoid suspicion) and was just about to climb in, when a hand clamped down on my shoulder.

Not again.

"Prince Adrian, you need to return with us." Said the dickhead. Why did he have to find me here for? And now of all times?

**A/N: So what do you think? Adrian is a Prince?! No wonder he told everyone his name was Jet! **

**I would really appreciate reviews on this chapter, good or bad, so I know what you think of the twist. This is obviously a large part of the story line, so I just want to know if you would carry on reading? I promise it's not going to be all... bleugh, if you know what I mean! And do you think this story is good overall, or should I disconue it? I really don't want to though so please share thoughts if you want to! :) *hopeful***

**Until next time**

**CherrySlushLover says**

**Over and out! =]**


	4. Chapter 4: Jet's Real Name

**I'm so sorry that I keep changing it, but my readers opinions are really important to me.**

**AN: This chapter is dedicated to thexjamstervidsx for your review. Even though it was only about updating, I really appreciate the fact that you took the time to review!**

**Check out the story _Breakthrough_ by _jemily145, _it's really amazing! I loved. it a**

**nd I think you will too! :) Please don't forget to review your thoughts on it either, as it is her first fanfiction. Very well written for her first fanfiction, might I add! ;D**

**I reposted this chapter because I received a PM from Mrs Akz Cipriano that she thought the ending was quite cliched and if it was possible to change it. Sorry , but it still includes the scarf, read my AN to understand why!**

**It's very important for Sydrian shippers...**

**So here is the brand new version just for you, I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I own only the plot!**

"Sydney, sit down. Since when did you become so impatient?"

I decided that now was not the time to mention that I had always been impatient, but never showed it, and as my sister, she should know that. So instead I said jokingly, "Since you started acting like you were about to die from a hangover."

Seriously, the sooner Jet came, the better. And hopefully, he would arrive before my dad came and we would avoid awkward explanations altogether.

A black Bentley Continental GT pulled up outside my house and I hastily picked my jaw up off the ground. It was gorgeous.

When I saw who exited it, my jaw threatened to drop again. Jet. No wonder he was so arrogant when he had a car like that. But he had come out of the passenger seat, which suggested that it was someone else's car. I squinted to try and make out the driver, but the tinted glass made that near impossible. I sighed in frustration and... Jet was coming here! I quickly sat on the sofa and grabbed Zoe's magazine from her shocked hands, so I could seem unaffected when Jet walked in.

But obviously, I had forgotten to take into consideration that Zoe was currently an invalid, which therefore meant she was unable to get the door.

I kept the magazine in my hand and answered the door, keeping my face composed.

He stood there in all his glory for approximately two seconds before he walked in and shut the door behind him

"Come in?" I said, wording it like a question.

He grinned and bowed, as though he was part of a monarchy."You will be blessed by my presence for a couple of hours at least Sage. There's no need to look so glum already!"

I scoffed. I was sure even royalty weren't that conceited. His grin just widened in response.

Was it just me or did he look slightly edgy?

He made to walk past me but I blocked him. "Why the sudden rush?" I said, folding my arms.

Which was a stupid mistake, as it brought the magazine into Jet's line of sight.

He smirked. "Didn't think that was your kind of reading material Sage. I had you pegged down as someone who reads those thick books that can double up as a weapon."

I laughed sarcastically. "Haha, hilarious. I didn't have you pegged down as someone who reads."

I knew exactly why I was acting like this, but I couldn't bring myself to stop. Offense was the best defence-always. I knew he had received that message that _Zoe _had sent, and I didn't want to add even more confidence to his already largely inflated head. That's what I told myself anyway. My heart was telling me that it was because I didn't want to become just a name in his long line of conquests; I wanted to be something more. But I ignored that feeling, it was my head that ruled over what my heart felt every time, your head was more reliable in complicated situations.

"I don't. I'm just good at analysing people," he said truthfully. In that moment, I thought I saw a flicker of who Jet really was, but obviously I would probably never see that side to him again, as the next words out of his mouth was, "Actually, scratch that. I'm just a bundle of brilliantness."

Just as I was about to reply, and desperately not trying to think of how I wanted to see the true Jet behind the mask, Zoe called out from the living room,

"Okay, stop flirting already! I don't want to witness any PDA's! Come in here and give me my magic potion that will get rid of this killer headache already!"

I jumped away from Jet, whom I had unconsciously been leaning towards and said , "Go on, give it to her."

"I'd much rather give it to you. I think she likes me." He complained quietly.

I sighed. "Has that ever bothered you before?"

I had to give him some credit, he actually looked like he was thinking. He frowned adorably-I did not just think he looked adorable!

"I don't think a fifteen year old girl has ever had a crush on me." He said straight faced.

"So a fifteen year old boy has?"I said, jokingly.

He looked at me and his brow wrinkled thoughtfully. "You should smile more often. Your eyes light up and it's nice to see you happy, and not drowning with the sorrows of the world all the time," he paused. And I noticed that this was the most... normal I had seen him so far.

Strange that when he seemed the most grounded, I felt the most crazy.

I was glad I didn't blush easily.

Instead of doing something I knew I would most definitely regret-continue this conversation- I didn't say anything else to him and just walked casually into the living room and took a seat next to Zoe, who winked conspirationally. I intentionally drew no attention to her and placed the magazine on the table.

Jet entered then, slightly late, and pulled an opaque bottle out of his pocket and passed it to Zoe, who opened it and sniffed it suspiciously. Wrinkling her nose, she said, "Are you sure I have to drink this? It smells absolutely vile!"

He raised his eyebrows at her use of the word 'vile', and I was dying to know why. But then he shrugged, saying, "It's only half full, and it's easier if you drink it quickly and block your nose."

She brought the bottle hesitantly to her lips and pinched her nose with one hand. I refrained from doing the same, I knew I would hate to have to drink that questionable concoction. I could smell it from here.

Her face growing slowly determined, she gulped it down and wiped her hand across her mouth the moment she was done.

She waved the bottle above her head like it was a prize, then dropped her hand to her stomach, groaning. "I think I'm going to be sick." She ran upstairs with those words to the bathroom and Jet crossed immediately over to the window. He nodded once, clearly satisfied about something. I noticed that the Bentley had gone.

"Whose car was it?" I asked curiously.

"You saw it?" He frowned.

"Of course. Who wouldn't notice a car like that?" I replied, standing next to him.

He promptly pulled the curtain back into place and moved away to the sofa. I was hurt, but refused to let it show. Was it really that bad to stand next to me?

I didn't follow him again. His serious face suddenly turned playful as he met my embarrassed gaze and misinterpreted it.

"So you were looking out of the window for me?" He said, suddenly deciding to return next to me and leaning against the radiator.

The sun came out from behind the clouds, briefly illuminating his silhouette, making him look like an angel. A particularly bad angel.

I gulped discreetly.

_Sydney, get a hold of yourself. He's just another guy-an extremely hot guy who makes your insides feel all tingly- but still just another guy. Screw your head on. _

I took my own advice and crossed my arms, trying to seem calm.

"Well, Zoe was dying, and and you are the one who told me to take care of her, aren't you?" I threw his words back in his face.

He had a way of turning the conversation away from him when he didn't want the limelight focused on him. Which was rarely, but it still happened. He didn't want to answer my questions about the car for some strange reason, but it was his choice. I barely knew him.

Zoe cleared her throat in the doorway. "I just felt the need to clarify that Sydney was looking out the window every ten seconds."

I threw her a dark look and turned to Jet. "As I said earlier, Zoe was in a lot of pain. And I wasn't waiting for you, I was waiting for my mum to return from work."

He nodded, smirking. "No need to get defensive, I believe you."

I exhaled, biting back my retort. It would only make me seem more guilty. I walked to the kitchen without a backwards glance and set about making myself another latte. Some people turned to alcohol for comfort; I chose coffee.

Zoe joined me after a while and whispered, "I'm going upstairs to 'sleep'; give you two some privacy."

"Are you feeling any better?" I asked, concerned.

She hadn't really complained that much, but she clearly thought that she didn't have the right to complain. I pressed my palm to her forehead. "You don't feel hot, but resting for a while is a good idea, I think."

She rolled her eyes. "Clueless. Okay, I'll see you at dinner."

"Supper." I automatically corrected her.

She flounced off screaming goodbye to Jet, who waved back.

I watched their exchange and smiled to myself. They actually got on.

I quickly averted my gaze as Jet looked at me, but there was no point.

He was coming here. I took a seat amd pulled one out for him. He sat in it gratefully and an awkward silence ensued.

Strange. I didn't think that being in the same room as Jet would create any kind of silence; he always found a way to make people laugh.

I remembered the party, and the way he had suddenly become so... withdrawn from his surroundings. I still remembered his words, for some odd reason.

_"And you think I drink too much," he had said. "Don't worry, I know."_

The blank expression in his eyes as he had said that spoke more than any words could have. And I found myself wanting to comfort him; to take away the hurt. But how ridiculous was that?

I didn't even know him.

I suddenly felt lost and had no idea why. I sipped my latte, just for something to do.

Jet didn't speak until my coffee was finished, my cup washed, dried and put away.

He seemed to be having some internal battle of some kind and I wasn't sure if speaking to him was going to help matters. So I waited for him until I was actually about to tell him that I was there to help. Thank goodness I didn't, I was sure that would have scared him at least a little.

"Sage, I..." he hesitantly started. "I haven't been entirely truthful to you."

"You don't owe me anything Jet. I don't know you." I said quietly.

He laughed once, as though at some private joke that he didn't really find that amusing. "You should at least know my real name!I'm in your house, for fuck's sake, hiding! It's the least I owe you."

I flinched a bit from his use of harsh language, but tried to betray no emotion to this otherwise rather startling news. I knew what he had said, but it didn't really register, which was weird. I normally didn't have a problem accepting strange news.

"Whatis your name then?" I asked quietly.

He looked up amd grinned, which I took as a positive sign. "Adrian."

I smiled back and wiped a hand across my forehead, in an attempt to cheer him up. I had no idea if it would work though. "Phew, I thought it was something worse that Jet."

"Jet's an amzing name!" He argued.

"Adrian's better."

"Oh, so you like my name too now?" He said, leaning forward.

I leaned back in response. And then I realised what he had said earlier. "What do you mean, you're hiding?"

His face fell again, but it was quickly replace by a grin. He didn't ever let his true emotions show but I could sense his reluctance and anxiety from his eyes. They were the window to his soul, and I could feel myself getting lost in the sea of green.

"I... ran away from home." He answered, snapping me out of my daze.

I sensed there was a lot he wasn't telling me, but ignored that fact. It wasn't my business, he would tell me if he wanted me to know.

"I cant let them find me!" He said, suddenly sounding desperate. He made to grab my hand and then thought better of it and moved away at the last moment.

"Sage, I know you have no reason to help me, but I literally have no one else. I swear, if you help me, you'll never have to see me again, if that's what you want."

_It's not,_ I thought silently.

Resigned, I said, "What do you need?"

Jet-Adrian- smiled, his entire face lighting up. It wasn't mocking or a smirk, or anything half-hearted; it was a genuine smile, and it was dazzling. "Thank you Sage," he paused. "I need a disguise, I guess."

I nodded, getting straght down to business. "Hair dye?"

"Black will go well, and it matches the name Jet too. An added bonus!" He said cheerfully, as though he had won the jackpot.

I was going to have to be the serious one. Like there was any doubt about that.

"And a getaway vehicle, if you have one. " he added almost as an afterthought.

I frowned, try

ing to think. I was sure that we had hair dye, but the vehicle was a tricky request. And then I came up with the perfect solution.

The bike that Keith had gifted to me alongside Latte, just in case 'I preferred motorbikes'.

This was the perfect chance to get rid of it, even though it was stunning. I had kept Latte purely because of the fact that I had needed it and I had technically earned it with my own hands, but I had no reason to keep it. I frowned at my enthusiasm to get rid of it. I felt bad about it, but I knew every time I saw it, my desire to destroy Keith would be even bigger, which wasn't really a good thing, considering that he came to lunch every week.

I took Adrian to the bathroom, after a heated discussion about whether hair dye in the kitchen sink or the bathtub was better. I won, and Adrian was now crouched over the bathtub, clenching his eyes tightly shut.

"Oh God. It looks awful, doesn't it?"

I ran my fingers through his now inky-black hair, washing out all possible leftover dye. I relished the feel of its silkiness, and then pulled back abruptly. "It's hardly the end of the world Adrian. " I grinned.

"So it does look awful! It _is_ the end of the world Sage, how will the world cope without me amongst them?" He said, walking over to the mirror.

"Get over yourself, it looks okay."

He touched it gingerly, and I refrained from saying how much better than 'okay' it looked. He looked even more like an angel that had just fallen from grace, and that infuriating smirk wasn't really helping matters.

"I like it too. I look different, which is good. It'll be harder to spot me now," he smiled happily.

"Too bad we couldn't get you contacts." I said thoughtfully.

He frowned at me through the mirror. "Hmm?"

"The colour of your eyes aren't normal. I've never seen that shade of green in my life. if I was stood next to you, I would be able to tell almost immediately who you are because of them." I replied matter-of-factly.

He cocked his head to the side, as though trying to see right into my soul with those very eyes. I shifted nervously from one foot to the other, hating the scrutiny.

"Let's get this show on the road."

* * *

We stepped outside and I silently passed him the motorcycle helmet. He stood closer to me than I had initially realised. I averted my gaze, unable to hold his green-eyed stare... and then the moment was lost. Adrian grabbed the cel

eb magazine from earlier out of his pocket and waved it victoriously over his head.

"I didn't know you were into celebrities!" He said. "I don't want you ruining that brilliant mind of yours with all this trivial nonsense, so it's best I take it." His eyes glinted mischievously.

In my shock at his... infuriating behaviour, I had let go of my scarf, which now flew towards him.

He caught it. "I'll look after it Sage. I promise."

Without another word, he climbed onto the bike with the magazine still in his possession.

"Adrian!" I shouted. He just waved in response, my scarf trailing behind him.

If I could see his face right now, I would bet everything I had that he would be smirking.

**A/N: I hope you liked this ending better...**

**Adrian is the prince of Sweden, because that was what my readers recommended and I have a lot of readers in Sweden! :)**

**So that's for all my readers in Sweden!**

**And he didn't want Sydney to have the magazine because there was a picture of him in it...**

_**The reason the scarf bit is still in it was because of a review I got in a PM from Jemily 145. She said that it reminded her a little of when Abe gave Rose the scarf that belonged to her mum in Vampire Academy, and it symbolised a promise that they would meet again. I added the scarf in my chapter because I thought that I could show that Adrian has something of Sydney's that he has to return, so it keeps them bonded in a way and it's also a promise.**_

**I hope you understand why I wrote it like this now.**

** Until next time!**

**Xxx**


	5. Chapter 5: Adrian's Midnight Demand

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to _Andelin,_ I really loved your review and it seriously made my day! :)**

**And I just want to me to thank _MilankaBurkowitz_ too, because your review was about all my fanfictions, and I was so glad that you took the time out to review, especially because you're a guest!**

**Thank you to all my reviewers; I will try to give you all the thanks you deserve,**

**You are not forgotten! I just wanted to give you a special dedication for being suh a consistent reviewer!**

**Thank you to _jennie andersson.__982_ and _hopperivashkinator_ for offering to help with swedish translations, I will definitely take you up on that offer! :)**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter...**

**It contains a ****huge twist but I don't mention it specifically, it's not a huge deal to Sydney because it's something she has known her entire life...**

**See if you can guess correctly...**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Adrian, just the plot! And although I want to steal him, I understand that he belongs totally to the brilliant Richelle Mead!**

**Sorry for the long but extremely important AN!**

I had never thought that I would ever be the type of girl who sneaked out of her house to meet a guy. I had unfortunately proved myself wrong.

This was how it happened.

I clamped my pillow over my ears, trying to ignore the text alert I had just received. I tried to convince myself it wasn't important, but what about if it actually was? I would always regret it.

I sighed and checked it. It was a text from Adrian. What was he doing texting me at this time of the night? Didn't he ever sleep?

_Sage, can you come over? I'm in a bit of a dilemma! URGENT HELP REQUIRED! I could've waited until tomorrow, but I know you'd rather see me now. ; D_

I blinked sleepily a few times and resignedly threw off my blankets. I couldn't just leave him, no matter what time it was. And I was a tiny bit curious as to why the matter was so 'urgent'. It was definitely not because I wanted to see him again.

I hastily changed into my newly-purchased khakis and slipped outside, welcoming the darkness that would conceal me from any prying eyes- like my father.

Once, I had gone to let our cat out, and he had come two minutes later, demanding to know who I was sneaking off to meet. It had caused a huge rift in my parents' relationship for which I felt immmensely guilty, but my mother had assured me that it was in no way my fault, and that she would always choose us over him.

I shook off my mood and instead concentrated on why on Earth Adrian was calling me now.

I hoped he wasn't in trouble. Would he still be there? But his text didn't seem like he was in that sort of trouble, he just sounded like he was trying to irritate me as much as humanely possible.

I climbed gratefully into latte, glad to finally be away from my house and relieved that latte practically purred to life unlike my first car. Wait, what was Adrian's address? He texted me the directions and a long essay on how grateful he was, and by the time I had finished reading it, I was already on his apartment's stairs.

I knocked hesitantly, unsure whether I should have come. It couldn't have been that urgent if he was joking about it. But there was no chance to double-guess my actions, as in that moment, Adrian opened the door, revealing his ensemble. He was wearing a hooded jacket over a black Henley's top, along with dark jeans and boots. With the dark hair to match, he looked almost scary, except for the fact that those green eyes always made me feel safe for some inexplicable reason.

"Checking me out Sage?" He said, allowing me to walk past him.

"Why did you call me?" I replied, ignoring his comment.

But he clearly didn't want to let go of the subject as his next words were, "I thought I would change my wardrobe to match my new look. And is that a new pair of khakis I spy, Sage?" He pointed at my legs, smirking.

"Yes they are." I didn't say another word, hoping to discontinue this conversation as soon as possible. He was making me feel weird and I didn't like the queasy feeling I was getting in my stomach either, almost like butterflies.

Butterflies in my stomach.

I had always wondered what that phrase meant and now I knew.

I wasn't sure if I liked it yet.

"So you actually bought a new pair of khakis from khakis'r'us just for me? I'm honoured! Wait, did they have a sale on? Then I'm not so honoured." He grinned mischievously, clearly enjoying my discomfort.

Well, I wasn't going to let him win. I played along and said, "Yes they had a sale, but it was for members only. And these were the cheapest ones and handpicked just for you."

They were actually the nicest ones at the store, which was _not _ called khakis'r'us, but I wanted to see what his reaction to it was.

His smirk just grew even more pronounced and he sat on the most horrible plaid couch I had ever seen before answering.

"So I'm not good enough for a membership then?" He patted the couch next to him and I gingerly sat a distance away from him.

I did my best to look comfortable. "No, membership cards are only for people who are actually going to shop at the store and I really don't think you'd use it."

"It would help with my casual look thing that I've got going on." Adrian said thoughtfully.

I raised my eyebrows. "Adrian, you are not getting a membership card and that is the end of this discussion."

"Oh well. I'll just have to come with you when you go next. And they look way better on you anyway. I can't wait to see you sampling all of them." He raised an eyebrow suggestively. "You know, in the changing room."

I chucked a pillow at him and he caught it, covering his face behind it. "Temper temper, there's no point in denying your feelings for me Sage!"

I groaned and tried to think of a defense. And then I realised that the entire reason I was here was not to talk to him, but to help him solve his problem, which clearly wasn't as important as I thought it had been.

"Adrian, it is 6:00 in the morning. I can't deal with this right now. Why am I here so early?" I paused. "And this apartment seriously needs cleaning."

I looked around, taking in my surroundings properly this time. I hadn't really checked it out when I had first come in, a fact that shocked me a lot, seeing as I was normally always looking at everything. I always thought about what I could learn from it or what I knew about it.

The walls had been painted in springtime yellow, obviously an attempt to brighten up the room. The entire room smelt of pine, clearly due to the dozen bottles of pine cleaning liquid. I realised that Adrian smelt of cologne and slightly of pine, and something exotic that I couldn't really place. Before he could notice where my thoughts were heading, I turned back to the room.

At least the floor had been vacuumed, and it seemed that once it was clean, it would make quite nice living accommodations for Adrian.

I wasn't a huge fan of all the clutter that was just about visible from the bulging black bags though.

I couldn't see any food either.

"Adrian, have you ate yet?" I asked, concerned.

"No, I haven't managed to break into my account yet."

I grew puzzled at his choice of words, but my fingers were already rooting through my bag, trying to find my phone.

"What do you want to eat?"

"Desserts, or an sweet thing would do!" He smiled, clearly elated at the prospect of eating. I shuddered just at the thought of all that sugar coating the insides of my mouth.  
"Adrian," I chastised him, "That's not a proper meal."

"Please Sage? Just for today?" He pleaded, widening his eyes until the green of them nearly consumed my entire vision.

I blinked rapidly. "I think I know a place."

Whilst waiting for his food to come, I went back to interrogating him on why his apartment wasn't clean, and at the same time searching the kitchen cupboards for any plates, glasses and cutlery.

Whoever had lived here had clearly left in a hurry, and left behind trivial things such as cutlery.

It was in no fit state to be used though, they were so filthy that a layer of dust had formed over them.

Adrian watched me with a sheepish expression on his face.

"Adrian, it's horrible. I'll have to clean it! "

"I haven't got around to unpacking yet; I'm still waiting for the cleaner to get here!" He said defensively.

I stood and faced him, wishing he didn't have those several inches on me. Nonetheless, I placed my hands on my hips and attempted to stare him down. "You've got a cleaner; what happened to getting your hands dirty?"

"Sage, don't make me laugh. Do these hands look like they occupy themselves in doing manual labour? And anyway, my hands are good- better- at doing other things." He waved his hands in front of my face, trying to illustrate his point.

I didn't miss the hidden meaning behind his words and just chose to ignore them instead. His smirk showed that that was exactly what he had expected me to do. Regardless of my feelings, I pushed his hands away, ignoring the spark of electricity that passed through me upon contact with his skin. That was just insane.

But his eyes said to me that he had felt it too. Back to the highly important and urgent topic. I had let myself get distracted by the state of his apartment.

"Adrian, stop getting distracted, I've been here for half an hour and I'm still no closer to find out why on earth I am actually here. Care to enlighten me?" I was going slightly frustrated and amused at his ability to switch topics so easily.

"Oh 's so easy to get disteacted by you. That loose fitting blouse is just makin me crazy. Actually, I already am." He added, frowning slightly."And handsome, but that's a moot point."

Could he get any more big-headed?

_He does have a right to with that face though._

I just tried to ignore what he had meant when he had said that it was too easy to get distracted by me.

"I was thinking that since I've already come up with another gorgeous appearance, I should come up with a new identity as well. The name I've already created and I've been on the system for almost five years for whenever I needed to get away, now all I need is a background story and I think you could help." he paused for a slight second before continuing. "You don't have to obviously, you've done more than enough."

He ran a hand through his hair, an anxious gesture I had grown used to in my couple of days of knowing him. I couldn't help but tease him about it though.

"Careful, you don't want to ruin the awesome hair."

"Sage, I'm going to look undeniably sexy no matter what my hair looks like, but I'm flattered that you think it's awesome." He laughed.

I just about refrained from rolling my eyes. I couldn't help but silently agree with him there though. "So how exactly are you planning on fading into the background? And of course I'm still going to help you, you've still got my scarf, remember?" I joked.

"How could I forget?"

It was when he said things like that, all quiet and meaningful, when I honestly thought there was a side to Adrian that no one else saw. I just wished it came out more often; I liked that side to him, even if the other side made me laugh, and go crazy too.

"Adrian Ivashkov never fades into the background," he said confidently, but then his voice flickered, as though he had let on more than he have ought to and he was not happy about it. He continued, trying and failing, to disguise his sudden discomfort. I had no idea what he was so worried about suddenly.

But his next words took all thoughts cleanly out of my head.

"I want you to try to get me into a college, an art college preferably."

I felt a pang go through me when he mentioned college; it was an extremely impossible prospect for me, because my father said that no daughter of his should lower themselves into studying with ordinary people. I wasn't even his daughter, so I didn't see how that applied to me, but he had given me shelter for almost my entire life so I guess I owed that much to him. But I still hoped that one day, I would be able to muster up my courage to ask him if I could go; Zoe and Carly, his real daughters were allowed so why not me? His excuse didn't really seem justifiable.

Adrian looked at me, looking concerned for some odd reason. "Are you feeling alright, Sage? I thought you would probably have woken up for college yourself soon, otherwise I never would have even thought about waking you up at this godforsaken hour!" He eyed the cross at my neck and added hastily, "No offense to God."

The fact that he thought I went to college was just another blow to my chest. I shook my head, muttering, "I can't go to college."

Understanding immediately that I didn't want to continue this line of conversation, he said, "So, will you be able to help me? I mean, it's fine if you can't..." he trailed off.

I interrupted him before he strayed off topic again. He asked for my help but always seemed to be unsure whether I was going to actually assist him. For a supposedly confident guy, he certainly seemed slightly insecure to me. But maybe that was just it; I was the only person who could see it. "I should be able to get you a pace in Carlton college easily. And they also offer art classes and other academic studies if you're interested in them." I stopped myself from mentioning that I had already looked into all the classes they offered for myself, but I obviously hadn't done anything about it yet.

Thinking like this made me feel like a weakling. I promised myself that I would ask my mum whenever I got the chance, and I wasn't going to back out of my vow either. I never broke promises; if I couldn't keep it, I wouldn't promise it.

"That sounds perfect Sage. Thanks." He looked relieved, as though a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

I grinned, trying to forget about my yearning for knowledge for now. "Nowxan we get to cleaning the apartment? "

"Sage, you're killing me here!"

"Adrian,I'm just telling you to clean up." I said, frowning. He made no sense to me whatsoever.

"Which is exactly my point."

My bewilderment just increased.

Thankfully, the doorbell rang at that exact moment, saving us from having another silly, _but fun, _argument. I handed the money over to the cute delivery guy who always served me whenever I visited the modest little shop. He had never spoken to me though. He didn't seem really surprised to see me at the door, but was shocked to see Adrian hovering behind me. Adrian's new look was quite... intimidating.

"Oh, I didn't think I would see you here, Sydney. " he said, looking at Adrian suspiciously. Adrian tried to grin innocently, but looked anything but.

Wait, he knew my name?

"Oh, this is A- Jet, my cousin. He's just moved here, and I'm just helping him to get... settled in." I said quickly. If he noticed my slip-up, he didn't say anything.

You're helping your cousin at this time?"

Just as I was about to answer, Adrian said, "You're conveniently open at this time? And you say Sydney's name when she's placing the order, and then claim that you didn't think she would be here? And no offense, but I don't want you concerning yourself in my _cousin's _business."

"Adrian," I said quietly, warning him to stay quiet now. I had to admit that he had totally made Brayden (I had checked his nametag slyly) forget what he was asking me about. And he had no right to tell Brayden that he didn't want him talking to me, since he wasn't actually my cousin.

"Brayden, it's fine. I'll come over later for some coffee, okay?"

He nodded satisfied, and after throwing Adrian a last dark look, he disappeared into his silver Mustang.

"Nice car." I muttered.

Adrian looked at me, slightly amused, but some other emotion lay deein his eyes. I couldn't decipher what it was yet though.

"Why would you meet him for coffee?" Adrian asked casually.

"Because he owns the best coffee shop for miles around. Well, his parents do."

"Oh."

I shut the door and walkedinto the kitchen, glad I had thought to clear the table.

I sat and gestured for Adrian to do the same when he just stayed standing.

"Sit down."

"Fine." He rested his chin on his hands, looking at me as though gazing right into my soul. "Why do I have to be your cousin for? " he complained, before digging into the French silk pie he had ordered.

"I didn't think that would be an issue." I said, raising my eyebrows.

"Why say that I'm your cousin though?"

He paused with his fork halfway to his mouth.

"What else could I say? Thst you're my brother?" I replied, exasperated.

"You could've just said I was your boyfriend." He said quietly. "Is the mere thought of it too bad for you, Sage? That I could be your boyfriend?"

"No," I stuttered. " I did not actually think of that."

I had, but I had thought Adrian would hate me for saying that.

He smirked suddenly, shocking me. "It may actually have its perks though."

"How so?"

"Well, I could take you everywhere and no one would sat anything, except Zoe who loves me to pieces so she wouldn't anyway. And I could make Brandon's life hell."

"Adrian!" I tried to act angry, but a sneaky smile was spreading its own accord on my face.

""So , I guess you're going to have to take me to khakis'r'us after all, Sage. You wouldn't want anyone to think you're unwelcoming, would you?"

"Shut up Adrian." I

said, but I was laughing.

**A/N: I just had to bring the incest type thing into it; it's one of the funniest parts of the bloodlines series!**

**Anyone guess what the twist was? And do you think I should bring more VA characters into it? I thought it would be fun! :P**

**Hope you liked it, I loved writing it, especially the second half! Thank you to all my reviewers so far, and my favouriters and followers; you all inspire me to pick up my pen and start writing!**

**xxxxxxx**


	6. Chapter 6: Sightseeing with Adrian

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Keep Calm And Dream for all your amazing reviews, for following and favouriting! I always look forward to reading your reviews, because they always make my day and thank you so much for being such a consistent and dedicated reviewer!**

***virtual hug***

**And *hug* to Andelin too, you deserved that dedication!**

**Okay, just some dedications now, sorry for the long AN... **

**This chapter wouldn't be complete without HopperIvashkinator and jennie. andersson. 982 for all your support and help with swedish words! jennie, you are pure awesomeness and thank you for offering to help in the first place! **

**And hopperivashkinator again for staying up until early morning and bombarding me with swedish words that I have to learn! And for being one of my best friends on fanfiction and making me laugh at things you've wrote! This chapter is posted so you can go to sleep early today, little vampire! :)**

**Tack för all din hjälp!**

**I also included Adrian in a leather jacket just for you _stophating99!_**

**To jemily145: Sydney is adopted, so Jared Sage is not her real father (thank God), and she doesn't know who her real parents are either! She's lived with them for as long as she can remember...**

**That was the other twist! :)**

**Translation and sneak-peek in bottom A/N.**

**I've changed this chapter slightly after SageWinter's suggestion that Sydney would have freaked out a bit more about Adrian being followed.**

**Disclaimer: I only own the plot.**

"Sydney, where are you? Dad's going to be back soon and you know how he hates it when you're out and he doesn't know where you are." Zoe whispered nervously.

"I'm with... Jet. He just needed some help finding some shops in town. And it's only 12:30 still, shouldn't dad be coming at 9:00?"

There was no way dad was going to start dictating where and when I could go out; that was a step too far. I needed to start standing up to him now, otherwise this was going to get out of hand really quickly. He had never given Zoe or Carly a curfew, if he hated me so much, why hadn't he just left me all those years ago, like my real parents had?

"You're with Jet?" she squealed. Adrian smirked beside me, and I knew he could hear every word she was saying. Unfortunately, there was no way I could tell Zoe to not say what I thought she was going to say as it would just add more fuel to the fire.

"Oh my god, Sydney, do not blow this! You will never get another chance! He's the perfect boyfriend, and not to mention, the first boyfriend you will ever have! Please say you are _not _wearing those teacher outfits you always wear. They're so unflattering!" She paused slightly for breath and I winced slightly, wondering at what the damage was.

Adrian brought his lips to my ear and whispered, "On the contrary, I think they're very flattering."

I suppressed a shiver and jumping two feet in the air and instead maintained an unimpressed facade. "Zoe, that's... highly inappropriate. I'm not sure when I'll be back, but don't worry, I should be back before dad."

Which gave me another nine hours with Adrian, who was still standing so close to me that I could feel his cool breath blowing my hair.

I finally managed to disconnect the call after Zoe stopped spluttering casual flirting techniques and gladly deposited my phone (after I put it on vibrate) into my pocket. Next time, I would make sure I was not within listening distance to Adrian if she called.

"Where do you want to go now?" I asked him stubbornly, knowing he wanted to question me on some of the things Zoe had said.

"Where Hayden works." Adrian replied, grinning devilishly. He had some ulterior motive, I was sure of it.

"Brayden." I corrected, not knowing what else to say except to start walking to Spencer's, where he worked.

We sat in the furthest and most concealed booth from the door after several desperate entre

aties from Adrian, for some strange reason. Brayden, like Adrian had predicted, came to us soon after.

"He's just being friendly," I hissed at his comment, "That is his job."

I smiled widely at Brayden when he reached our table and ordered my usual skinny vanilla latte, whilst Adrian opted for a milkshake topped with cream. I shuddered at the mere thought of all those calories.

"So," Adrian started after Brayden had gone, leaning forward conspirationally. "Zoe's trying to get us together, is she?"

I shook my head firmly, despite the fluttering feeling I was getting in my stomach. "No, she's just trying to get me out more because she thinks I don't get out enough."

"Well, I would be willing to take you out regularly so she thinks her work is complete and that you've acquired your first boyfriend." He smirked, slurping his milkshake.

I threw my napkin at him.

He caught it and tucked it into his pocket. "I'll keep it as a token of your gratitude. "

Could he get any more infuriating?

_Yeah Sydney, that's exactly what you think of him._

Trey, another barista that I had come to know in all my trips here, decided then to saunter over and take a seat next to me, ignoring Adrian's suddenly furious expression.

"Hey, how are the kangaroos doing down there?" I rolled my eyes.

Ever since I could remember, Trey had always started a conversation with me with something Australia related because he found it amusing. I almost never did and this was definitely one of those times. But I put up with it because Trey was one of my closest friends outside my academic ones. Actually, he was probably the only person I talked to that had nothing to do with my studies.

"Hi Trey, what's up? There are no kangaroos as far as I know."

"Unfortunate, and nothing much, you know what it's like," he increased the pitch of his voice and imitated Brayden's mum. "Serve coffee Trey, don't talk to customers, that's not your job to do, don't flirt, even if it does bring in a lot of female customers!"

I laughed at how accurate his impersonation was. "That was surprisingly good."

"When are we going to khakis'r'us Sage?" Adrian asked, interrupting mine and Trey's casual banter. He said it just as Brayden decided to join our small party too. I didn't know why I was so angry about that.

"Khakis'r'us?" Brayden frowned. "I don't recall a shop with that name, so you're probably mistaken. Sydney, I don't mean that you're wrong obviously!" He quickly added on seeing my expression.

"No, there is. It's where Sydney shops and it has a silver and black sign, it looks posh. But obviously I wouldn't accept anything less from Sage." Adrian stubbornly continued.

I sighed internally. Why did Adrian love winding Brayden up so much for?

"No, I'm sure I would've noticed it if Sydney goes there regularly. " He blushed when he realised exactly what he had said.

"So you're stalking her now, are you?" Adrian leant forward, and in his leather jacket and with that dyed hair and those suddenly piercing emerald eyes, he looked formidable.

I think I knew exactly where this was going.

"Do you know what? I think I want another coffee." I nervously said. As I had guessed, Brayden immediately stood and went to make me one.

Realising that Trey didn't know who Adrian was yet, I decided impulsively to introduce them. "Trey, this is Jet, Jet, this is Trey, the guy who keeps me sane with regular coffee refills. Jet is my..."

But Adrian interrupted me smoothly before I could finish by saying,

"She's my girlfriend."

I scowled at him; what was he doing? A small, tiny, part of me was elated at the fact that he had said that though, but I tried not to let those emotions through.

"Really?" Trey frowned. "I'm sure Brayden said you were cousins."

They had already discussed that? I shook my head in disbelief; they clearly gossiped like women, not to be degrading to my own gender, of course.

Adrian raised an eyebrow as though he was thinking the exact same thing and I bit back laughter, until he said, "Sydney was embarrassed that Brandon had caught her so she said that to cover the truth up."

I didn't bother correcting him this time. He wasn't technically lying about what had happened earlier, but the context in which he said it in made it seem like I was the one who was lying. Well, I was, but then, so was Adrian. Why hadn't he just gone along with it?

Of course he wouldn't go along with it. He was Adrian. That thought made me smile for some odd reason.

I kicked him discreetly under the table and pinned him with my most scariest stare, but he just looked back at me innocently, as though he had no idea what he'd done wrong.

Trey jumped suddenly, clutching his foot. "Ow, what was that for?"

I bit my lip, understanding now why Adrian looked like he was trying to hold back laughter. He suddenly couldn't hold it in anymore and he laughed uproariously earning glares from most of the people in the cafe.

"Tell Brayden I said hi, okay? Um, we'll get going now," I said to Trey hastily. We needed to get out of here before Adrian caused even more damage.

I waved goodbye and stalked out, not glancing back to see if Adrian was following me. He was still chuckling when he reached me and threw an arm around my shoulders. My heary sped up which was totally not to do with the fact that _Adrian _had his arm around me. That was just a silly misconception, especially since he was annoying me to death so far today with his 'hilarious' comments.

I attempted to shake his arm off, but he left it there, unrelenting. "What? We might as well act like you're my girlriend!"

"I don't want my reputation to get ruined." I replied coldly.

"Ouch, harsh. But no one who walks with someone as brilliant as me can have their reputation ruined; it'll most likely increase, and for all good reasons. And as Zoe said, I'd make an excellent first boyfriend."

I leaned into his arm groaning as I replayed her words and then jumped back, shocked at what I was doing and how natural it had felt.

Adrian looked almost as surprised as me, but also smug. My insides tingled at his half-smile and I cursed myself for thinking about it.

Adrian suddenly ushered me into an alley, muttering something under his breath.

"Skit, vad I helvete gör dem här tilbaka? Jag hoppas att den här förklädnaden funkar, annars är jag körd."

He spoke Swedish? I understood hardly anything except that he had swore, and was now looking back at two men anxiously. He took off his leather jacket and put it around me and threw the hood of the hooded jacket he had on under it up, effectively covering his face.

Was this who he was hiding from?

His hands were suddenly on the wall either side of my head, and my breathing suddenly became laboured. He leant in close, so to any bystanders, it would look like we were sharing an intimate moment, which I think may have been the point.

"Sage, please don't push me away. I'm not going to try anything, just, is it possible for you to act like you're kissing me and not just standing here?" he whispered urgently. His voice made me shiver, even though I desperately tried to stop it.

I could feel his heart beating almost as fast as mine as I entwined my fingers in his hair, but whether that was due to fear of them men or something else entirely, I wasn't sure. The neverending green of his eyes was muddling my thoughts up, but the hard wall behind me kept my head screwed on, for which I was glad.

There was no way I would've done this if Adrian's life hadn't been in danger.

He had unconsciously moved closer to me, and I could now feel his body almost entirely pressed against mine and the smell of his intoxicating cologne enveloped me. His eyes searched mine, and for a moment, it seemed as though there was no one there, just me and him.

But of course there was, and he pulled away soon after, almost reluctantly. I pushed away from the wall and started to take off the jacket, but he stopped me, saying,

"Keep it. It suits you," he winked. "Anyway, I've still got your scarf."

"But what will I do with it?"

"Keep it, think of me whenever you see it and smile."

"Smile at what? Your infuriating personality?" I replied, but the thought of me keeping Adrian's jacket was making my head spin a little, which was very stupid of me.

So instead, I said that.

Adrian smirked at my answer. "If that's what you want to call it."

I could tell he was just trying to distract me, but I wasn't going to let him. "Adrian, who's following you? Are you in danger from them? If they want to hurt you, the police can help!"

"Sage, I think the less you know, the safer you will be," he said seriously. There was not a hint of humour in his eyes and for the first time since being with him, I felt scared.

Not for me, but for him.

"Adrian, please just tell me. I can help," I pleaded, needing him to understand that I didn't want to see him hurt for some odd reason.

He suddenly seemed conflicted, his hand running through his hair in a nervous gesture. "I will tell you, Sage. It's just that I don't want you to run screaming once you know. And I like the relationship we have at the moment."

I nodded, trying to understand. I hadn't told Adrian all there was to know about me either, so I couldn't expect him to do that for me. He would tell me when the time was right, I was sure of it.

I just didn't know why I felt so hurt that he didn't trust me.

"Are we going to khakis'r'us now then?" he said, taking my hand suddenly and pulling me back into the street.

"Let go of my hand," I said, frowning. What was he doing?

"They're still there."

I sighed, but left my hand in his. Tingles were shooting up my arm; I would have to find out whether that was a symptom of some illness, it had been happening a lot for the past few days. These stalkers were a larger problem than I had anticipated.

I felt as though I might just have to force Adrian to tell me why he had totally changed his appearance and why people were following him, whether he wanted me to know or not.

"I'm glad we met, even of it wasn't in the best circumstances," Adrian said suddenly and quietly.

And I knew that my next words contained not a hint of a lie, despite what I would try to convince myself afterwards.

"So am I."

**A/N I hope you**** enjoyed it; reading through it, I wasn't really happy for some reason, but I guess it's your opinions that count!**

**I think I foresee an early update because of how much I love you guys!**

* * *

**Skit, vad i helvete gör dem här tilbaka? Jag hoppas att den här förklädnaden funkar, annars är jag körd== Shit, why the fuck are they here? I hope this disguise works, otherwise I'm fucked.**

* * *

**Oh, you want a sneak-peek? Okay...**

_**"I didn't know that you spoke Swedish. " I looked up at him, his green eyes suddenly closed. Then he looked at me, and whatever anger he had been feeling vanished.**_

_**"You don't? I'm shocked. Isn't it your job to know all languages that have existed since time began?"**_

_**"No." **_

_**"Tja, jag vet verkligen hur man tar fördel av denna situation." He chuckled, not caring to elaborate.**_

_**"Adrian, what does that mean? Oh, can you teach me?" I said, excited by the prospect of learning. **_

_**"Not yet, but soon." He promised.**_

_**I smiled, glad he wasn't enjoying tormenting me about it.**_

_**But of course I was wrong and stupid for believing that.**_

_**"Ses senare snygging." **_

_**And he walked off, whistling to himself, throwing a wink over his shoulder when I screamed at him.**_

_**Yes, I was very wrong indeed.**_

**I will not translate those sentences until the next chapter, you're welcome to take guesses, of course! ; D**

**Any particular VA characters that I should add? I think we'll see them in the next chapter! :)**

**Would you like me to do sneak peeks on every chapter or not?**

**Thank you to all my lovely reviewers again, you have no idea how much I love you all (figuratively!)**

**Xxx**


	7. Chapter 7: Closer to the Secret

**A/N: This ****chapter is dedicated to jreads12 for your review, I'm sorry this update wasn't as early as you hoped it would be! But there will be sneak peeks every chapter, I promise! I love both your stories by the way, they rock! I love Cam and totally wish Luce would get with him, so your fanfic was awesome for me! I always wanted a brilliant Luce/Cam fanfic and I found it! :)**

**Okay, that's enough rambling on about myself, and on with the chapter that everyone wants to read!**

**Oh, and to tardiskeys: Cool, but I'm upset my Swedish surprise didn't work with you... Jag har en briljant svensk lärare! Jag hoppas att du gillar det här kapitlet och att det lever upp till vad du än fantiserade!**

** (I've got a brilliant Swedish teacher! I hope you like this chapter and it lives up to whatever you imagined!)**

**_Rose, Dimitri, Eddie and Jill are all in this chapter just for you, my lovely readers! _**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot, and I don't claim to know Swedish either, my wonderful friend and supporter HopperIvashkinator is the brilliant mastermind behind the Swedish words! :)**

"Wait, slow down. I'm coming, we don't want them to hear us," I whispered, creeping along the hallway. Zoe sighed but waited for me as we tilted over the banister to eavesdrop on my parents' conversation. Not something I had imagined I would be doing at half one in the morning, but sometimes sacrificing sleep was necessary.

"...Isn't it going to be safer for her if she goes to school, wouldn't it help her blend into the background more?" My mother's voice came drifting up the stairs, wavering slightly, probably because my father was probably giving her that 'your words aren't worth my time' look.

"I am not going to put her into a public school and ruin mine and her name! I am already frowned upon by my brother because I decided this was a better life! You know the only reason why Sydney is with us," he whispered furiousIy.

Zoe looked at me when he said those words and wrapped her arms around me. "Sydney, you know I always think of you as my real sister, right?"

I nodded, not trusting myself enough to speak; I was afraid my voice might shake and betray my emotions. Yet I leaned over further over the banister, craning my neck to hear what my parents had to say about this 'taboo' subject. It was never brought up by the family, and no one else knew about it. My blonde hair was close to the shade of my father's, so it didn't look like I wasn't their biological daughter.

"How about an elite, private school? Carlton's nice."

I gasped out loud and Zoe looked at me, her brow furrowing. I fiddled with the cross at my neck and silently sent a prayer that I would be allowed to go. Was this the chance I had been waiting for-the chance to go to college? To be able to expand my knowledge about literature, architecture, biology- it was almost too much to bear. Being home-schooled meant that I knew more than the average person, but recently, I had found that my studies didn't push me as much as they used to, and I craved the time when I could go somewhere and learn about something I didn't already know.

And then I realised that I had just got Adrian a place there. But that was not going to stop me from living my dream out. I crushed down that thought almost as soon as it had appeared; I didn't even know for certain whether I could go.

It was announced that I would be going to college in three weeks time, I just hoped that this wasn't one of those time when I got my hopes up for nothing. I had learnt that to hope was to have your dreams shattered; a lesson that had been proven several times already.

I heard them get up and dragging Zoe with me, I we crept to my room and shut the door, just as they came up the stairs.

We were both breathing hard, thrilled at having got away from my father if he had found out we were eavesdropping, my chance to go to college would be gone befoee I could list all the elements in the periodic table.

"Oh no. I left my hair ribbon in the hallway!" Zoe exclaimed.

"It's dark, I'm sure they haven't found it," I assured her. "I think you should just sleep in here, because the floorboards outside your door creak and then we'll definitely get caught."

Zoe just walked over to my bed and pulled my duvet over herself. She yelped after only a few moments and pulled my mobile from the bed.

"You're texting Jet?" she exclaimed, rubbing her hands together like an evil mastermind would. "Seems like my plan is going well then after all."

"Whatever, Zoe."

Yes, that really was the best comeback I could come up with.

* * *

When I woke up the next day, Zoe had already disappeared back into her room for which I was glad, because I had already received a text from Adrian asking me to come over to his house. Since I had met him, I hadn't had a decent night's sleep, and I was happy to tell him that. He had obviously taken it the wrong way and replied,

"Well, how is it my fault you can't get me out of your head? It isn't my fault I'm this irresistable, is it?"

And he wondered why I didn't want to come over. When I finally reached there, I discovered that I had woken up this early because he was too lazy to clean his apartment.

"I swear you ring me at stupid times just to annoy the hell out of me," I sighed at Adrian, trying to pull my layered hair back into a ponytail. "So it was really impossible for you to attempt to clean _your _house alone?"

"Yep," he nodded cheerfully. "And obviously I want my 'girlfriend' to keep me company."

"Don't remind me," I muttered under my breath.

I searched his cabinets for a decent cleaner, but they were just stocked with countless of bottles of pine cleaner. There was no way I was using that on the units; we would have to go and get some. He immediately declined this idea, saying that he didn't want to risk getting followed again.

Which meant I would have to go myself to get_his _cleaning products for _his _apartment.

Yes, this is what my life has been reduced to.

My journey was uneventful and I didn't notice anyone in particular on the same block as me twice. But in the traffic I may have easily missed someone and I couldn't shake the feeling that someone was actually watching me. Adrian's paranoia was rubbing off on me.

I walked into Adrian's apartment ready to scream at him, but he was nowhere to be found. My curiosity growing, I walked round to the back, and the sight that met me made me feel as though Adrian had ripped my stomach out and stamped on it, though I had no idea why.

He was wrapped in the arms of an extremely thin girl with bouncy brown curly hair, who said, "I'm so glad I finally found you, Adrian. I missed you so much!"

So she even knew his real name. "Glad to see that you did actually miss me," Adrian laughed back, putting her down.

He finally noticed me standing in the doorway and he beckoned me over. "Sage, this is Jill, my cousin."

I felt stupid. What had come over me? It wasn't like he was my actual boyfriend. To make up for my irrational behaviour, I smiled at Jill, who was obviously around Zoe's age, despite her height.

Another man with sandy blonde hair came from the kitchen and froze upon seeing me, standing in front of Jill protectively, as though I was some kind of threat.

"Castile, this is Sage, she's not someone you need to be worried about. Apart from if you don't clean up after youself," he said, winking at me when I glared at him.

Seeing that I was still confused, Jill added, "Eddie's my boyfriend."

Eddie blushed ever so slightly and Adrian threw him a look. "I thought you two were just _friends."_

Emphasis on friends.

Well, this was strange behaviour, that much even I could tell.

Jill blushed and looked at the floor, playing with her hands. "I was just about to tell you but then I know what you're like, and you would have asked so many questions and it's not like we're... he's just...and I didn't know whether it would be safe if he didn't come and... and we are friends, it's just that..." she broke off abruptly, her gaze falling on me.

I couldn't help the small smile that appeared on my face when I caught Eddie's expression as he looked at Jill. He looked at her as though she was the only thing that mattered in his life, and I couldn't help but wish that I would find someone who would look at me like that.

Definitely not the way Adrian was looking at me right now and smirking.

I glowered at him and dumped the cleaning products in his hands. That wiped the smirk off his face. "Oh come on, Sage. You can't leave me like this! I'll end up ruining it all, knowing me! And you haven't even talked to Jill and Eddie properly either!"

"You don't ruin everything you touch, Adrian."

I didn't really want to dwell on why I had said that and why Adrian was suddenly grinning like crazy, so I hastily continued. "Though I didn't actually hear an apology in that."

"Then you'll stay?"

"I'll consider it," I said, putting my hands on my hips.

Eddie and Jill watched the entire exchange with raised eyebrows and small smiles, although I had no idea why.

"Fine, I am so sorry for being a meathead and making you angry, will you please consider staying now?"

"Since you admitted to being stupid, I guess I can stay... as long as you promise not to wake me up at a godforsaken hour again, unless absolutely necessary."

"Define absolutely necessary."

"Adrian," I warned.

"Fine, I agree to your terms and conditions, now can you- I mean, we- please start cleaning?"

Adrian and I started on the kitchen whilst Jill and Eddie decided to do the living room. I would have paired up with Jill, who was bound to work harder than Adrian, but I didn't really want to interrupt their 'alone' time, so I was stuck with Adrian. Jill constantly asked me random questions on everything and anything, occasionally mentioning her own life experiences, but she closed her mouth before she said too much. I had no idea what she was too scared to disclose to me, but it was clear all three of them had secrets that they weren't willing to share with me. I tried not to let it get to me though.

I was that wrapped up in my own thoughts and my actions had now become methodical- empty, scrub, wipe- that I didn't notice the huge black spider coming out from the sink unit at first until it started crawling on my hand.

I flailed and threw it off, jumping backwards into Adrian's arms, who instinctively wrapped his arms around me. "Woah, where's the fire, Sage?"

I exhaled deeply and approached the unit again, embarrassed about jumping like that. The spider was still there and I grabbed a glass to trap it in and threw it outside. I then washed my hands upto my elbows with soap vigorously before starting to empty the units again, ignoring my audience.

Adrian just watched all of this, bemused. "Who would have though that the indestructible Sydney Sage would be afraid of a tiny spider?"

I narrowed my eyes at him and thrust my chin out stubbornly. "It wasn't tiny, it was huge, and I am _not _scared of spiders."

"Could've fooled me! That expression of pure terror on your face was hilarious!"

"I swear if you mention a word of this to anyone, I will..."

He was suddenly right in front of me, invading my personal space. "You'll do what?"

I took a step back, my back hitting the unit. Why did my stupid brain have to think about our 'moment' yesterday for?

My heart rate soared, probably reacting to the terror I had felt yesterday on learning that Adrian was being followed. It was definitely not because of how close I was standing to Adrian.

"Okay, stop flirting already. You could at least wait until you were alone," came Eddie's voice.

I moved away from Adrian and laughed unconvincingly."Adrian was just being stupid. Who wants to get some coffee now? I think we're due a break."

Adrian surprisingly instantly agreed and we all went to Adrian's cafe of choice- Spencer's.

I should've known.

We walked a little behind Eddie and Jill and Adrian reached for my hand again as soon as we stepped outside. I shook my head at him but realised that he wasn't doing this to annoy me whatever I may think; it was for his protection.

Resignedly, I slipped my hand in his but he went one step further and wrapped an arm around my waist. "No way, Adrian," I hissed at him.

It was bad enough when those tingles repeatedly shot up my arm when he touched my hand; I felt even worse with his arm wrapped around me.

"Everyone thinks you're my girlfriend anyway, what's the problem?"

"In case you haven't noticed Adrian, we're not actually together, whatever everyone thinks. And I will hold your hand so those stalkers don't drag you off and murder you, but this," I gestured at his arm, "This is just a step too far."

I had no idea why I was so against Adrian touching me in any way, even though I knew it meant nothing.

The problem was that I think I had an aversion to it because I_knew_ it meant nothing.

Adrian just took my hand in his again and changed the topic, gesturing to the couple in front of us. Jill had her head close to Eddie's, who was whispering something to her. She laughed and nearly tripped, but Eddie's arms quickly wrapped around her, stopping her from hurting herself. I could see her blush from here.

"What do you think of them?" He said quietly so they wouldn't overhear us.

"They're nice, and it's obvious that they like each other a lot."

Adrian froze. "What?"

I looked up at him, unsure as to why those words had such a reaction on him.

"Jag visste att han dra drag på henne!"

"I didn't know that you spoke Swedish properly, I thought you only knew the swears. " I looked up at him, his green eyes suddenly closed. Then he looked at me, and whatever anger he had been feeling vanished.

"You don't? I'm shocked. Isn't it your job to know all languages that have existed since time began?" He replied.

"No."

"Tja, jag vet verkligen hur man tar fördel av denna situation." He chuckled, not caring to elaborate.

"Adrian, what does that mean? Oh, can you teach me?" I said, excited by the prospect of learning.

"Not yet, but soon." He promised.

I smiled, glad he wasn't enjoying tormenting me about of course I was wrong and stupid for believing that.

"Ses senare snygging."And he walked off, whistling to himself, throwing a wink over his shoulder when I screamed at him.

I ran after him and grabbed his hand. He raised an eyebrow and I hastily pulled back but he held on tight. "We wouldn't want them to think that we're having an argument, would we, Min älskling?"

"That's going to get really annoying really soon," I muttered to myself.

A girl with dark brown hair that nearly looked like it was black suddenly intercepted my path and I finally managed to place her. She was the girl that had helped Zoe at the party and her name had been...

"Rose."

I looked at Adrian in surprise and was shocked to see what I found there. His entire face had contorted in anger and he was staring at Rose's companion as though he wanted to rip his hair out and leave him in a ditch to die.

"What the fuck are you doing here? Why did you follow me? Are you going to report me to my dad again?" Adrian's words help pain and his voice shook; he was trying to keep his emotions in check. His grip on my hand tightened and Rose's gaze dropped there, her eyebrows nearly disappearing into her hairline when she say our entwined hands. She smiled slightly but this only sparked Adrian's anger.

"Answer me, Rose." He didn't shout, but I flinched at his words, the raw emotion finally coming out when he said her name. I would have said that they had some sort of romantic history but Adrian didn't seem jealous of Rose's companion, he just seemed furious.

And Rose and her friend were clearly as in love as Jill and Eddie were; it wasn't exactly hard to tell.

"We came to see if you were alright, and if you want, we'll be your guardians," Rose said, looking straight at him. "Because you can't look after yourself."

Her bluntness surprised me but no one else raised an eyebrow at it, including Jill and Eddie, who had just caught up to us, so it clearly was her normal speaking method.

Always straight to the point, no tiptoeing around it.

"No, we're fine without you, I've got Eddie now anyway and I'm doing fine by myself. Clearly, I _can_ take care of myself."

Rose sighed but turned to me, frowning. "I've seen you before. Where have I seen you before?" she said.

"At that party, you told me where my sister was," I replied.

"Oh yeah, I sorted out Victor for you, by the way."

"Victor?" I frowned at her, confused. I didn't know a Victor.

"The man who had his hands all over your sister."

"Urm, thank you I guess, but Adrian already sorted him out for me." I dropped my head, not wanting to be reminded of thst night's events. They had been the source of many nightmares so far, and it constantly turned into one of Carly and... him.

Adrian smiled at me slightly and I refrained from answering it, but clearly my mind didn't want to listen to me and I smiled back. I appreciated his effort to lift my mood, especially when he was clearly more affected by these events than I was.

"He did?"

"Why so surprised, Hathaway? You really do think I can't do anything except drink, don't you?"

My heart broke a little in my chest at Adrian's despair; he tried to hide it so well behind his sarcasm but I could see how hard it was just to uphold this conversation. He was shaking slightly and his muscles were so taut that it felt like just one word could cause him to finally snap.

All I knew was that he wasn't worthless, and I had no idea why everyone was treating him that way. He had helped me and my sister when we were total strangers and he had made me laugh more than my family ever had. Even though I hated the fact that he woke me up at silly times, I had been happier in the past two weeks than I could ever remember being in my entire life.

That sounded stupid even to my own ears, but not one word of it was a lie.

Rose looked slightly abashed, and she started to speak, but her friend intervened, introducing himself as Dimitri. "Adrian, you know we didn't mean for that to happen. We had our own lives in the line too, and your father is a ublyudok."

"He uses blackmail to get his way, it wasn't my Roza's fault," Dimitri said gently.

"You and your Roza can get out of my sight now, I don't want to see you again." Adrian said quietly.

Dimitri stopped speaking and Rose reached out hesitantly to touch Adrian's arm.

He jerked back.

"That's an order."His voice was final.

Dimitri pulle

d Rose away despite her protests and started muttering something in Russian to her. She instantly brightened and kissed him. he wrapped an arm around her and pulled away, shaking his head I in amusement when she scowled. I looked away; that moment seemed too private and I felt like an intruder watching them.

Jill wrapped her arms around Adrian's torso, tears streaming down her wiped them away gently.

"Jill, you don't need to cry, it's in the past now. I'm done with it." The way he comforted her was the way a brother would treat his younger sister and I just looked at him, glad that I had seen yet another better side to him.

He caught me looking and smirked slightly. "Beundrar utsikten, Sage?"

"Don't expect me to feel sympathy for you, Adrian, " I shook my head at him, pretending to be exasperated at his antics. The fact that he kept speaking Swedish was irritating me though.

"That's the last thing I would want you to feel for me."

I realised that he still hadn't removed his hand from mine and clenched it slightly, wondering yet again, what went through the mind of Adrian Ivashkov and why I couldn't seem to work him out.

He was a mystery but not one I didn't want to solve.

Far from it. But firstly, I would have to find out what he was keeping from me.

When I finally got home, Icouldn't stop myself from smiling but it seemed as though my interaction with Adrian for the day hadn't finished yet.

At 7:00 precisely, a knock came at the door and a man gave me a parcel with a note. The parcel was in fact spaghetti and meatballs, and the note read,

_Sorry for being a meathead. Try the food, I made it myself. I think you'll like it. Swedish lessons tomorrow? A x_

I ate the food in my room, even though my dad made sure to comment on how I clearly had no self-restraint.

Adrian had sent it for me-how could I not?

**A/N: **

**Sorry for any typos, I updated off my phone. Don't hesitate to tell me if you find any errors!**

**Sydney's scared of spiders! :)**

**And finally, the translations! :D**

**Tja, jag vet verkligen hur man tar fördel av denna situation= Well, I really know how to take advantage of this situation.**

**Ses senare snygging= See you later, gorgeous.**

**Min älskling= my darling**

**Jag visste att han dra drag på henne= I knew he was pulling the moves on her**

** Beundrar utsikten, Sage= Admiring the view, Sage?**

**I hope you liked the chapter! **

**_Next chapter in Adrian's POV, anyone? _**

**That's the reason there's no sneak peek because I'm not sure yet...**

**It's 4am here,**

**Review? :)**


	8. Adrian's POV: Sage

**This chapter is dedicated to Nightwrighter511 for your review! I hope this Adrian's Point Of View is what you hoped for! :)**

**A late Eid Mubarak to whoever celebrated it on Thursday/Friday! I hope you enjoyed it!**

_**And thank you for all the reviews; I read and appreciate every one!**_

_**You will find out what all that was between Rose and Adrian and Sydney's dad is someone I hate immensely, so I tend to write him as a horrible person, because he is. There will be more JEDDIE and ROMITRI, and Adrian views Rose and Dimitri as the 'bad people' and he will think that for a while before things...change!  
**_

**_That's all your answers._  
**

**ADRIAN'S POV!**

**Sydney may seem a little Out Of Character near the end of the chapter, I hope you get why.  
**

**I wrote half this chapter before I went on holiday, so here it is:**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I only own the plot.**

"Look, I know you love me, and I wouldn't do something like that without telling you. Can we end this conversation now?" I sighed, grounding out my cigarette under the heel of my shoe.

Jill, who had recently decided to become my 'adviser', had recently decided that I needed relationship help and was currently trying to find out what I thought about Sage, because she apparently detected 'frisson' between us. What the fuck was frisson anyway? I would have to ask Sage, who would most definitely know.

"But you pretended to be her boyfriend and everything and got all jealous and protective and you love teasing her and I could definitely detect frisson between you! Why can't you just let me help you?"

"Aah, Jailbait," I patted her head, ruffling her hair as I did so, knowing she hated it. "How can I look at another when you're here in all your glory to compare to? But your heart now belongs to Eddie so I guess there's no room for me."

I cared for Jill deeply and though I never let it show, the fact that she actually worried for me was something I cherished. She saw right through me though and understood me better than anyone as though there was an unbreakable bond between us. I smirked at her, knowing that she would undoubtedly blush.

She did.

"Adrian, you need to move on with your life. Not everyone is going to do what Rose did; Sydney wouldn't do that."

"I didn't think Saint Rose would do it either, but she still broke my heart and stepped on the pieces on the way out. It was only because I caught her on her lie that I found out, otherwise she never would have told me." I lit up again and took a long drag, my hand physically shaking from the anger I felt towards Rose and Dimitri. Yes, she was a bitch. I knew that now. But why did she have to say all that 'useless' crap in front of Sage for?

I couldn't forget the look on her face when she had looked at me, but what had it meant? Did she honestly not care what others thought of me, or was that pity in her eyes?

_Stop thinking about her already, Adrian._

The weird thing was that I had been able to look at Rose and the dickhead without feeling jealous that he had her. I had just been furious that they had honestly not cared about me in the process. I could already imagine what they thought when I had found out.

_'Poor Adrian. He'll get over it though, it hasn't really affected him. He'll go back to the drink and forget all about it, like he always does."_

The problem was that they had been right. I had drunk myself into oblivion and still did, though not as much since I had come to Utah. It was like this place was a new start for me.

Jill shook me slightly, pulling me away from my dark thoughts. "It's going to be alright, Adrian."

I nodded at her falteringly; was it really going to be okay?

"Sydney's coming soon, so I think this is a good time to get ready for her."

I cocked my head to the side and looked at her in a way that I knew she hated. "Don't I already look good? And shouldn't you be getting ready for your _boyfriend, _Eddie?"

She flushed and stared at the ground, clearly wishing to be swallowed up by it. I chuckled. It had been so easy for her to lie and say Eddie was her boyfriend, even though he was just her bodyguard; why was it so hard for Sydney to say I was her boyfriend? Was she so repulsed by that idea?

That bothered me more than it should have.

"You know I only said that because Sydney was here, just like you said she was your girlfriend because you're using her as a cover."

"I am _not _using her!"

I found myself defending my bizarre relationship with Sage, and I replayed all our moments together so far, Was I using her? No, I wasn't. I did consider her as a close friend, but that was it, despite Jill detecting 'frisson' and Zoe attempting to fix us up and the way I felt when she defended me in front of Rose and held my hand.

Okay, that was a lot of_ despite_'s.

My harsh tone made Jill flinch and I instantly regretted it, no matter how angry I was at Rose's unexpected arrival. "Sorry, Jailbait. I didn't mean it."

She exhaled slowly. "I know you didn't. It was your spirit speaking."

I frowned at her choice of words but didn't comment except to say that I was going to have a shower. I let the water run down my back, washing away the thoughts that had been crowding my mind. I lathered myself up and laughed when I imagined Sydney's expression when I would continuously say things in Swedish that she didn't understand. I was sure that she wouldn't think like that once she knew that I was the Prince of Sweden and therefore required to know Swedish.

Speaking of Sage, the doorbell had just rang.

Rinsing myself off quickly, I wrapped a towel around my waist and went to open the door, knowing that Jill had gone with Eddie to shopping.

I pulled the door open to reveal Sage in a pale blue blouse and her usual khakis. That colour complimented her skin tone perfectly and her eyes seemed more lighter than usual. Her eyes widened, no doubt because of my current attire and I could swear that her cheeks had gone a shade darker.

"Come in, Sage. Or do you want to carry on ogling me?"

She pushed past me, making sure that she didn't come into contact with my definitely hot body. I knew she was rolling her eyes even without even seeing them. She had averted her gaze.

"Adrian, wear some clothes and then we can talk. And thank you for uh- inviting me."

"Whatever you say, min Sage."

She huffed, looking like she wanted to push me into my room herself. But she wouldn't risk touching me. I laughed at the thought and she stared at me like I was crazy.

Well, I was. Crazy, that is.

"I am not _your _Sage!"

She knew what that meant? Damn, I couldn't piss her off now and laugh at her reactions.

I held my hands up in a placating gesture and backed out of the room, laughing at her expression. She was definitely worried that my towel would fall off. Hmm, I wonder what she would do if it actually did fall. Accidentally, of course.

_She'll never speak to you again._

Okay, definitely not worth it then.

I sauntered back into the living room, sporting a midnight blue button down shirt and jeans. I knew I looked good in it and for some odd reason, I wondered if Sage thought so.

"Ready to start learning?"

"Yes," she nodded enthusiastically.

She pushed her hair back and leaned forward, alert.

Wait, she looked different.

"You look different," I frowned.

Her face fell ever so slightly and I cursed myself. Why the fuck did I love saying the first thing that came to my mind?

"You cut your hair," I said, suddenly realising.

She touched it self-consciously and muttered something along the lines of, "My layers were taking too long to grow out and I thought this would suit me better."

"Du har ingen aning," I said quietly.

Oh hell no. It was happening again. I kept saying my thoughts out loud. At least this time she didn't understand.

Sage groaned loudly, letting her head rest against the back of the couch, giving me a clear view of her smooth neck.

_Pull yourself together, Adrian. Stop thinking like that. _

"That's going to be really annoying so you better start teaching."

"You mean, you're not annoyed already? So I'm a pretty good boyfriend so far then!"

The next four hours passed in much of the same way, with me saying random phrases that I wouldn't translate, and only translating the ones she wouldn't be embarrassed to know the meaning to.

The sun was setting lower in the sky, and I jumped up, grabbing Sage's hand as I did so.

She looked shocked but followed me nonetheless. When we reached the balcony and she gasped at the view, I smirked smugly. I was right; she did love it.

"It's beautiful," she sighed, leaning her arms on the railing.

"Du är för."

"I understood that one too," she whispered.

"I know."

We were on the dangerous brink of falling into silence, so I spontaneously decided to show something to Sage that I wanted her to see.

I hummed quietly as she followed me into my bedroom.

It sounded a lot worse than it actually was; I was just showing her my paintings, something that I surprisingly never showed anyone.

Apparently, art was useless.

Sydney's eyes were immediately to to one of my favourite pieces; it was abstract, a painting made with only two colours, a record for me. Windsor red deep and Perylene green. It was a deep red that swirled intricately through a green so dark, it almost looked black.

"The juxtaposition of the colours is what makes the painting interesting; it shows the contrast between what I feel when I'm drunk, and when I'm sober. Basically, there's not a lot of difference in my mental state."

"You used juxtaposition in a sentence." She looked faintly awed.

I grinned. "Believe it or not, Sage, I am clever, and that word is used quite a lot in art."

She nodded."I know. Which colour represents you when you're sober?"

"I don't know yet. Sometimes, life seems better when I'm drunk."

It was the truth.

She just looked at me, but didn't comment for a while. "Does that have something to do with Rose?"

I was so stupid. Had I honestly think that the most observant person I had ever known wouldn't think about what had gone down between Dimitri, Rose and me yesterday?

Yes. Yes, I had.

My mind went blank, no suitable response coming to mind. Thankfully, her phone rang, interrupting us. She didn't look as happy by the distraction.

"Hi, Zoe."

I listened to her half of the conversation, trying to piece together what had happened.

"Yes, I am with Jet. What?"

I didn't have much to work with. Her phone dropped to the floor and she pushed away from me, shock being the dominant feeling on her face, along with anger and... hurt?

I took a step toward her, but she took a larger one back.

"Why didn't you tell me? I knew you were hiding something, and I wasn't bothered, because everyone is entitled to secrets, but to this extent? Do you not trust me?"

What was she talking about? She looked so upset, and I had been the one to cause it. What was wrong with me?

"S-"

"It wasn't like I would have gone and told the paparazzi. If you had told me that you were the Prince of Sweden, I would have still talked to you. Or was that the plan? Make a fool out of Sydney because she doesn't know any better? Why didn't you trust me enough to tell me? What was the reason? I thought you were the one person who actually believed I was something more and could trust me to tell me the truth; I am not five years old that I would go telling the next person I know!"

I took her hand in mine again, twining our fingers together so I could hold her to me whilst I explained. "Of course I trust you! I would trust you with my life!"

"So why didn't you?"she said quietly, not meeting my gaze.

I sighed. "Because of Rose. I trusted her and told her. Imagine how I felt when I found out she was spying on me for my dad and everything had been just a lie. And if the paparazzi got wind of this, of you, you'd never have a private life again! They would bombard you with questions about our relationship, even if we are just friends, and ask when our wedding was! I wouldn't do that to you."

I exhaled, hoping now that she'd understand why I hadn't told her. She wrenched her hand from mine, putting as much distance between us as possible, which wasn't much but felt like miles.

"I am not Rose! You clearly don't trust me if you think I'm in the least bit like her!"

"You're nothing like Rose!" I argued. She was so much better!

Clearly, it was the wrong thing to say.

"No, I'm not!" Her eyes looked slightly red, but not a tear fell. Somehow, that was even worse than if she had cried, because she didn't want to break down in front of me.

"I'm not beautiful, I'm not clever, I'm not strong, and I would never do that to you! And I'm sorry that the idea of me and you disgusts you that much; I didn't mean to be like this! And we aren't friends, not anymore."

My mind was numb. She threw me a heart-wrenching look and pushed her short hair out of her face, her eyes betraying everything she couldn't say.

"Sydney, please! I didn't mean it like what you're thinking! You're misinterpreting it!"

"So now I'm stupid. Well, don't misinterpret this. I never want to see you again."

She didn't shut the door behind her, and I watched her stumble to her car, almost screaming in frustration when she didn't look back.

My brain seemed to be on auto-pilot as I dragged myself back in. I slumped on the couch, reaching for a cigarette. Sage's disappointed gaze if she saw me kept appearing in my head though, and I stopped.

What the fuck was wrong with me?

"Adrian?"

"Jill, I've done a stupid thing."

She listened to me in silence, crying for me when I finished.

"Adrian, it's going to be okay."

I rested my face in my hands. "How is it going to be okay? She's gone."

I hadn't even had the chance to ask her what frisson was.

**A/N: Min Sage= My Sage**

**Du har ingen aning= You have no idea**

**Du är för= You are too**

**Didn't expect that, did you?**

**OMG, she knows that he's a prince! Huh, reading through this again, it's a lot shittier than I had expected. I will try to improve it when I get time...  
**

**Review your thoughts, whether you have an account or not; your opinion matters! Hope you liked Adrian's POV... review your honest opinion.**

**CherrySlushLover**

**xxx**


	9. Chapter 9: Unexpected

** A/N: This chapter is dedicated to cami belikov for your review! Hello, new reader, I'm glad you liked it! Hope you continue too, and I'm secretly glad you like Dimitri which means I don't have more competition for Adrian! :D**

**Thanks again to all my reviewers who review even without an account- there's countless guests (leave any name so I know which individual people to thank), Megan (hey!), Adrianfan, Jess (thanks for all your support!), Lucy (thank you too!), and Chloe (I love all your reviews, thank you so much!)**

**Big part of the plot is introduced in this chapter, so read on...discover more! ;P**

**Disclaimer: Do I even need to write this... it's depressing.**

I rubbed my eyes and yawned widely, almost feeling like going straight back to sleep when I saw the time and remembered what had happened two weeks ago. I just couldn't believe Adrian would lie to me; it was stupid, but I had thought he had actually considered me as at least a friend, if not a close one. But I guess I was wrong. It would be impossible to try to sleep now, but I made no move to get up, seeing as there was no reason for me too. So I just stared at the ceiling and wondered why the hell I was feeling so lost.

Adrian had left countless messages, voicemails and emails, but I hadn't replied to anyone even though I had read every single one of them and listened to his pleading voice too. But he didn't offer any sort of explanation except ones that made no sense, and I couldn't seem to forget the way he had compared me to Rose, the girl who had broken his heart.

On one of the voicemails, he had said that he didn't mean it the way he had meant it, but he didn't bother to say how he meant. How else could he mean it? If he wasn't saying that I was like Rose, then I had no idea what he meant. That I wasn't going to break his heart like Rose did? Because there was no possibility of him falling in love with me?

That thought shattered me more than anything.

A sudden sound at my window made me freeze, and I rose slowly to find out what the source of the noise was. And then the sound came again. I crept cautiously forward and twitched my curtain away from the window slightly.

I had not expected what my eyes now showed me.

Adrian was standing outside my house, throwing pebbles at my window to catch my attention. I compared the sight to what I had read about in books and realised it was surprisingly similar. Huh. I didn't think something like this would ever happen in real life.

I opened the window after a quick reviewing of the situation; he deserved to be heard out even though I was angry.

"What, Adrian?" I whisper-shouted.

"I need to explain," he answered.

I had figured as much.

"Go on."

"Can I come in? It'll save time and I can't feel my toes," he said truthfully.

I sighed, but went down to open the door for him anyway, but ensuring that the coast was clear first.

"'ve never seen your room before," he said upon entering. He surveyed everything with a raised eyebrow, but otherwise seemed to like the casual decor, judging by his small nod of appreciation.

"Adrian, that isn't the point. What do you want to say?"

I pulled my dressing gown around me, covering my less than decent attire of boy shorts and a tank top. The weather had been relentless and we were in the middle of yet another heat stroke.

Which was obviously why Adrian was wearing another of his leather jackets.

"I don't usually lie, Sage."

"But you did lie."

"I know, and I know this isn't the best apology, but I'm sorry. My past isn't really a place I wanted you to know about. If you knew, you definitely wouldn't want to know me, and I don't want you to think any less of me because of my actions."

So he had given a reason without really giving a reason. When he finally lifted his head from where they were buried in his hands, his shoulders slumped and his face fell. There was no denying that he honestly didn't mean it, but it didn't stop me feeling ever so slightly betrayed.

Didn't I deserve the truth?

"Adrian, what's so bad about your past that you have to hide? That you're a prince? Because I would still talk to you even though you are one. And why would I think less of you because of it? It just provided me with a valid reason for your arrogance," I said, smiling slightly to ease his tension.

I hated seeing him so down when he was normally so full of life, and to know that I was actually the cause of it was even worse.

He laughed bitterly and I frowned at him, surprised at his reaction to my words.

"Sage, it's not because I'm a prince. It's what deeds are connected to my name that you wouldn't like. And I know you'll be angry and hurt and you'll feel deceived because you didn't know that I was such a heartless asshole."

My fists clenched at my sides and the words flew out of my mouth before I could even think about their result. "Stop it, Adrian! How dare you act like you know what goes through my head; you don't know anything! It's my choice to think what I like, and I already know that whatever you think has made you into such a 'bad person', and whatever you think I'll react like, I will do the complete opposite. Because I've already made my mind up about who you are, and nothing you say is going to change that. You're a good person."

Adrian was looking at me with his mouth slightly agape and that lost look had disappeared; his eyes were sparkling again slightly. I continued without pausing; I couldn't seem to stop. "You're loyal and caring and funny and you act like you know, but you don't! Sure, you know you're good-looking, but you assume that all your characteristics are bad, but if they were, I wouldn't even be talking to you! Keith is what you call a bad person, so if you want an example, go to him!"

I had made sure that my voice was still hushed so that my dad wouldn't find out about Adrian, but I was still shaking slightly from my outburst. Adrian's mouth shut, but his eyes didn't stray for a second from mine. I was the first to look away, unable to bear that emerald gaze any longer for some reason.

Maybe it was because I had never actually lost control like that before.

"So are we friends again?"

Sometimes, Adrian was blind. How had he not realised by everything I had said.

"I guess so." I smiled at him, but he went one step further and pulled me into his arms. I stiffened in surprise, but felt myself relaxing in a way that I hadn't for weeks. Since we stopped talking actually. His arms were wound tightly around my waist, his face buried in my hair. A small part of my brain was asking if this was how two friends normally hugged, but I pushed it aside, just enjoying the moment.

All too soon, he pulled away."I guess I should get going now that we've made up," he grinned. "Wouldn't want your father to get the wrong idea, would we?"

I laughed, but a question that had nagged me for a while suddenly resurfaced. "Adrian, if you were so worried about paparazzi making my life hell because we're friends, why did you ask if I could pretend to be your girlfriend? Actually, now that I think about it, you didn't even ask."

He had just said to Trey that I was his girlfriend.

"If you've forgotten, I don't actually look like myself right now so it shouldn't be an issue. And I didn't tell anyone who I was, which will also lessen the risk of me being found."

"Zoe managed to find out who you were," I stated bluntly.

"Crap, I didn't think of that." He pulled a hand through his hair in frustration and walked over to my window, looking out, apparently having zoned out.

"We'll have to stop saying that we're together," I said quietly. It would be the only solution for us if we wanted everything to stay under the radar.

At my words, his head snapped back so fast that his neck clicked. "What? But that is the best solution, I guess."

He went back to looking out of the window, leaving me staring at his back. His position almost made him seem like he was... disappointed, but trying not to show it.

"I'll leave telling Zoe and I'll just say that she was mistaken and that you've left. And I'll tell Brayden and Trey that I've argued with you and split up," I added at the end, almost as an afterthought.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want Brayden to get the wrong idea, would we/"

"Okay, that's it," I started angrily. "What issue do you have with Brayden? He hasn't done anything to you!"

He muttered something under his breath, but I couldn't quite catch it. "I just don't like him; he called you a liar."

"You're one to talk, you compared me to Rose. I'd take Brayden's comments over that any day!"

" told you that I didn't mean that, Sage!"

"Then what did you mean?" I asked curiously. This question had been bugging me for so long now, and I was dying to know his answer.

"I don't want to fight, Sage. Not again."

"We're not fighting," I continued stubbornly.

He raised his eyebrows and stuffed his hands in his pockets as if to say, 'Really?'. He was being sarcastic of course.

"I just don't see why you don't like him," I replied- in hushed tones this time. "He's done nothing wrong."

I could see Adrian's resolve and arguments slipping slightly and his brow furrowed, as though he wasn't sure why he didn't like Brayden either.

"Okay, fine."

That was all he was going to say?

"It's getting light out. I should get going, Sage. Wouldn't want your parents to think that we were getting heavy."

His choice of words mad me stumble slightly in embarrassment because obviously, that would be the first thing that anyone thought. But I was glad that he was over his earlier mood and was back to his usual self.

"I'll see you later, Adrian."

"How?"

"I'll come over to your apartments, if that's okay?"

"t's more than okay," he grinned, clearly elated about something. "How long can you stay?"

I rolled my eyes at his antics; I could easily envision a little boy having the same reply.

"Adrian, I don't have a curfew."

He nodded and pulled my door open quietly.

"There's no way you can fly out of the window?"

"You've read too many vampire novels."

We descended the stairs quickly, glad that none of the stairs creaked and revealed to my parents what I had been doing.

Adrian was right. I had read too many novels.

We managed to reach the door without incident, until Adrian tried to wave and trapped his hand in the front door, which suddenly shut due to a sudden gust of wind. He yanked his hand back and made frantic gestures that his hand was broken.

Drama Queen. Or drama prince, should I say.

I pushed him out of the door before he could do anymore damage and ushered him out quickly, releasing a breath I hadn't realised I had been holding when he disappeared around the corner.

"Sydney, who was that?"

I spun around to be confronted by a tired Zoe, who was rubbing her eyes and blinking rapidly.

There was only one thing for it.

"I was seeing if the newspaper was here yet."

It was so lame that even I thought she wouldn't fall for it, but she just yawned and stomped back upstairs, muttering about lunatics. That had been too close. I got dressed quickly and grabbed my purse, having made the unconscious decision to get coffee. I was exhausted, but there was no reason to go back to sleep, only to be awaken in a couple of hours. Whilst I was there, I could even pass on the news that Adrian and I had 'broken up', which was another job done.

I would be going to Carlton college in a couple of days too, and if I remembered rightly, Adrian should have already started his art courses.

Switching off the engine and giving Latte a quick pat, I exited her and almost skipped to Spencer's. I hadn't had coffee in so long; it felt like I was suffering withdrawal symptoms like a drug addict might do.

"Hey, Sydney! How are you?"

Brayden had jumped to my side almost as soon as I had entered; this would be my best chance.

"I just need a coffee," I said, making my voice as dull as possible. As I had hoped, Brayden immediately picked up on it and after screaming my order to another barista, he sat across from me.

"What's wrong, Sydney?"

"I dumped Jet." I sniffed for added effect.

"Are you upset over it? Because if he doesn't realise how much of a prize you are, he's not worth it."

I wasn't too keen on being referred to as a prize, but this was necessary. "No, I'm not upset. I'm better off without him anyway; he's not good for me."

Brayden nodded in agreement, his glasses slipping off his nose slightly due to his vigorous head movements. "Definitely. If you want to take your mind off it anytime, just call me, okay?"

"I'll do that," I smiled, and took the latte, sipping it gratefully.

"You can come with me to watch Macbeth if you want to on Friday. I was going to go already..." he trailed off, staring at something to the left of me.

"Uh, sure. It sounds fun," I replied, wondering why on earth he wasn't meeting my eye when he was right in front of me.

"Great, I'll text you with the details then, Sydney!" His hazel eyes had lit up behind his glasses, and matched with that sandy blonde hair, he was actually quite cute. And he liked Shakespeare and worked in a coffee shop. Cool.

As soon as he had slipped out of his seat, Trey took it, leaning forward conversationally.

"So, is little Melbourne growing up? You're going on a date with Brady, huh? I knew there was something more than coffee that you loved about this shop," he said, slipping his arm around my shoulders.

"What?"

"That Shakespeare crap you just agreed to, Melbourne!"

_What the hell have you just done, Sydney?_

**A/N: Anyone who reviews or follows or favourites will get a sneak peek! I know, I'm so generous! **

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	10. Chapter 10: New Start

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to OnceUponACaptainSwan for being such an amazing reviewer on not just this story, but also Rewriting My Future and on my sydrian one shots, Thank you so much, you have no idea how much youth er support means to me! And I love the new penname; are you not obsessed with Channy anymore?! :D**

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**Disclaimer: As far as I know, I only own the plot.**

There was no way I had just accepted a date with Brayden. I couldn't get my head around the mere fact that I- Sydney Sage- was going to go on a date with Brayden. Muttering a quick apology to Trey, I made my way to Latte, not really paying much attention to my surroundings. Which was I walked straight into Jill.

"Sydney!" She squealed, wrapping her thin self around me in a surprisingly bone-crushing hug.

"Hi, Jill," I said uncertain as to why she was so happy to see me.

"Adrian's waiting for you to come and he's been biting my head off all morning to help him clean up!" She paused to take a deep breath, as if she was trying to convince herself more than me.

"But it's all clean now obviously and I'm not interfering. I was just telling you so that you would know that you would have to go down. He's back from college now anyway so you can go down, I think. He really wants you to see what he's done so far!"

"He went college today?" I asked in bewilderment. I would have thought that he would've told me when he was going, even if I didn't exactly have the right to be told.

"Yes, he did! And..." She cut herself off quickly, looking over my shoulder, her face contorting into something awful. She looked almost...afraid?

"Jill, are you okay?" I asked, concerned at the sudden change in her character.

"I'm fine, Sydney. I just forgot that I told Eddie I would meet him," she replied, giving me a dazzling smile that somehow still seemed tinted with that earlier fear. I decided not to comment though, thinking that I was probably just misinterpreting it like I usually tended to do in social situations.

Not the best thing when you were at a family gathering and your cousin was having a perfectly normal conversation with Keith. I shuddered as I thought back to that Christmas. Technically, it hadn't been my fault seeing as Keith was generally a sleaze and he had had that look in his eye, but my father hadn't seen it that way.

Enough of that though. "Tell Eddie I said hi, okay?"

"Sure."Jill had become suddenly unresponsive, so after waving goodbye, I got into Latte and pondered over our exchange, wondering if I had said anything wrong. As far as I could tell, she had provided most of the conversation, so maybe it was because she had ended up saying too much.

Or maybe I was just trying to take the blame off myself and indulging in wishful thinking.

Cutting the engine, I felt an automatic smile spread across my face as I realised Adrian was already on the doorstep, presumably waiting for me. Paint was splattered across his shirt and hands, but he didn't seem to care. He looked the most happiest I had seen him so far.

And then I remembered what had just occurred at the coffee shop. Was it necessary for Adrian to know that I had a date? No, it was not.

_Yes, it is. Why are you trying to hide it from him anyway? Or have you just discovered what you were hiding from yourself ever since you met him?_

"Okay, Sage. What is it?" Adrian asked, sighing and shutting the door behind us before placing a hand on the small of my back and leading me into the living room.

The slight contact made my stomach contract but I had gotten used to Adrian giving me these shocks by now, so I stopped myself from jumping a foot. I took a seat on the couch whilst Adrian opted to just lean again the wall and act macho. It could very possibly be because he thought that position showed him to his best advantage. Anything was possible with Adrian.

"I'm going with Brayden on a date apparently, " I blurted out before I could convince myself out of it.

"What?" His face was now frozen in shock, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly agape and definitely a complete turn from the calm, smiling Adrian who had been present only seconds earlier.

"It's not that impossible, Adrian," I said, slightly miffed that he was so shocked at the sheer idea that someone wanted to date me.

"It's not that, it's that you accepted. I didn't... think you would."

It was when he said things like this when I couldn't figure out what he actually meant. He said he didn't think I would've accepted Brayden's offer, but made it sound as though he had wanted to say something totally different.

I had no idea what he had wanted to say though. That was the problem.

"Yes, I didn't realise until later that it was actually a date." I felt the need to clarify my being oblibious to this all.

He looked at me intently, his green eyes analysing my every movement. I wasn't one for nervous habits, but I fidgeted with my sleeve in discomfort until he spoke.

"How exactly did he ask you?"

I answered as honestly as I could which was quite difficult seeing as I couldn't remember his exact words. "He just said something about whether I wanted to accompany him to a Shakespeare play he was already going to watch. It was only after Trey told me that I realised it was a date."

"Oh."

"That's all you have to say? Oh?" I replied indignantly.

"Well, actually, I wanted to actually say something else but I wasn't sure how you would take it."

"Tell me," I said quickly. I could feel my heart thundering in my chest and my breathing was definitely more rapid. And was it just me, or was it too hot in here? Yes, it probably was and my body was reacting to it.

He walked across the room to sit beside me, a sliver of space between us. I tried, and failed, to avoid looking at that tiny space which could so easily be bridged.

"It's going to be your first date, isn't it?" He didn't say it horribly, it was more like he was just stating the facts.

"Yes."

"Well, I could give you a practice date before you go so you aren't as inexperienced." He speeded through the words as though he wasn't sure what my response to them would be.

Wait, what? And then I realised that unfortunately Adrian couldn't read my thoughts despite what he acted like.

"What?" I repeated, unsure if I had heard him correctly.

"Yes, Sage. Seeing as you are woefully unaware in matters such as these, I have just offered you my expert services and will give you a 'fake' first date so you are not as oblivious to everything as you otherwise are," he said, crossing his arms and looking down at me from his superior height, even whilst we were both sitting.

It had the effect of making him seem like an imposing headmaster.

"I'm still not sure."

"Oh, come on, Sage! It's not like I'm going to try anything; you're a taken woman!"

"It's just that shouldn't you be hiding for a while before you go out- seeing as you're currently on the Most Wanted list?"

"Who said we need to go out? You can come over here and I'll do something fun too, I promise!"

I had to admit, he was slowly convincing me and my biggest defense had just fallen apart. It seem

ed like I would have to agree.

"Fine."

I would've sworn he was more excited about this than he should have been.

"Anyway, on a completely different topic, I've got something to show you," Adrian said cheerfully. Without waiting for an answer, he took my hand and led me to his room. A weird sense of de ja vu enveloped me as I remembered the day I had found out that Adrian was actually Prince Adrian. Sensing my unease, he withdrew his hand from mine; strangely, mine felt empty without his. Or there was just something wrong with me.

"Here it is," Adrian said suddenly, pushing a manila folder into my hand. He took a seat on the edge of his bed slightly to the left so I could sit beside him. I shuffled next to him close enough so I wouldn't fall off the bed, but far enough so that we weren't touching. Opening the folder cautiously due to the pure fact that I was unsure of its contents, I surveyed its general contents briefly and laughed. Adrian looked at me in amusement and slight bewilderment.

"What's funny?"

"Really, Adrian? You are 'an aspiring artist who loves nothing more than assisting others in acquiring their dreams.' And they fell for this waffle?"

He attempted to look affronted but failed miserably. "Yes, apparently they did. But that wasn't the point, Sage!"

"Then what was?" I frowned.

"Because of you, I'm finally able to go to college and attend art classes! No one's ever done that for me before." He said it almost apprehensively, as though unsure of how I would receive his words.

"I'm surprised. I have no idea why no one would want to do something nice for you."

"Because they think I'm just a lazy drunk?" He suggested helpfully.

"Well, they must be wrong, because I haven't actually seen you drunk once yet, not even at that party where I first met you. So clearly you're better than what they think of you," I said firmly.

He pulled me into an unexpected hug from behind- I had been facing away from him. His breath was hot on my neck as he leant down so he could whisper, "Thank you for believing in me, Sydney."

His honeyed voice saying my name felt natural as though he said it all the time...as though my name belonged to him. I twisted in his grip, wanting to know exactly what emotions were playing across his face right now. Was he feeling the same happiness, the same confusion as I was?

His emerald eyes immediately captured mine, and I noticed with a jolt, that I had been right. He was feeling as confused about all of this as I was and just as I was sure that I couldn't take the wait any longer, he pushed me away from him. Even though it was only an inch or two, I froze.

"Has Brayden actually asked you to be his girlfriend yet?"

I shook my head, not knowing where this line of questioning was leading.

"Good."

Hi eyes dropped to my lips, whilst mine were following his every movement. "We shouldn't, " he muttered, almost to himself.

But then his gaze dropped to my lips again and it was as if all his resolve slipped away. Tantalisingly slow, an arm inched around my waist whilst the other came round to cup my face.

And then both our phones rang at the same time. We were both slow on the uptake, still caught up in whatever that had been a few seconds before. But they continued to ring relentlessly, the beeps coming more frequent as we both hesitated to answer and they ruin the moment that had just transpired.

I was first on the mark, my voice only slightly breathy as I answered. "Sydney Sage speaking."

"Sydney, it's Eddie. Is Jill with you?" His voice was frantic and I immediately recalled my previous conversation, knowing that it obviously held some importance.

"No, she said that she was with you!"

"Stay at the apartment; it's not safe. I'm coming over."

**I hope you liked it. It is 3am so I apologise beforehand for any errors...don't be afraid to point them out!**

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_**This was all my fault. I had lost attention for a few seconds, and now she was threatened. A hand clamped down on my shoulder and I nearly screamed. **_

_**"Shh, it's only me. I came to make sure you're not going to do anything stupid," Adrian said quietly.**_

_**Although we were currently in a crisis, his close proximity still made me shover.**_

_**"Like I would do something stupid," I scoffed. "Take your own advice, Adrian."**_

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**Thank you to all my reviewers, followers, and 'favouriters' again! You honestly inspire me to pick up my pen! Love you!**

**CherrySlushLover**

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	11. Chapter 11: Selfish

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to the amazing happygirl0987 for your constant reviews and support! It's honestly the reason I've had the courage to continue writing on fanfiction, and I hope that you will continue loving this story! I want to go on and on about how happy I am atm, but I think most people skip out the AN anyway**.

**So, without further ado, the chapter you have been awaiting so impatiently!**

**Disclaimer: I own the plot fully :) I won't mention what I don't own because it's depressing and everyone knows the drill by now anyway!**

I crammed all the supplies we could possibly need into the boot as Eddie had instructed. There were several zipped up bags and a food bag, after I had convinced Eddie that it was necessary. A small tent was also stuffed inside just in case we needed to camp out . Shivering, I thought of who would share with who if that was what it finally came down to. Jill would obviously want to stay with Eddie, which meant that Adrian and I...no, I couldn't even think about that. The topic of Adrian brought up too many conflicting emotions and Jill needed my undivided attention right now. Making my way over to the driver's side, I zipped up my coat to find Eddie already there staring decisively forward, as though he was about to go to hell and back and he didn't care an iota about it.

"Eddie, get out of my seat. No one drives Latte," I huffed, folding my arms.

He laughed slightly but didn't budge, settling in comfortably just to annoy me. I could see why Adrian and him were friends. They both had the same annoying traits.

"I won't crash her; I'm the safest driver around. And who knows more about where we are going?You- or me?"

He had a point. I sighed, exasperated and reluctantly agreed that he was right.

"Fine, Adrian, get out. I'm sitting at the front to make sure Eddie deosn't lay a scratch on her." I turned my attention to Adrian, trying to pretend as though his smirk wasn't causing my insides to melt.

Eddie and Adrian both exchanged a look and smirked at exactly the same time. "No," they replied simultaneously.

I grumbled to myself as I took my place in the backseat, glaring at the back of their heads. In what way could Adrian contribute to the hunt for Jill? He was as clueless as I was; Eddie was the only one who knew what the plan was. Getting tired of staring, I replaced glaring at them for looking gloomily out of the window. No matter how much Adrian tried to convince me that Jill's disapppearance wasn't my fault, I didn't agree.

If I had just paid more attention to her, I would have realised that her actions didn't match up with her words. The look of abject terror on her face as she had stared off into the distance had been a massive indication that something wasn't really right, but I had just been too stupid to read the signs. Of course she hadn't gone to see Eddie.

If I hadn't been so...distracted by Adrian, I would've realised what was happening sooner. I was selfish to think about myself instead of her wellbeing.

"Sage? Going through coffee withdrawal?" Adrian's voice floated over to me and I raised my head to meet his eyes in the wing mirror. They seemed to shine more brighter than usual but maybe that was just my weird head. Could it be possible that Adrian was right? Was I going through coffee withdrawal?

"Of course not. There's no such thing," I frowned, showing him I was still frustrated with him for not giving up his seat. Suddenly, a thought I hadn't contemplated came to me and I nearly face palmed myself for not having thought about it earlier.

"Eddie, I saw Jill outside Spencer's. It's next to the prep school, Amberwood. Does that help?"

I saw his knuckles whiten on the steering wheel and I tried my hand at humour to lighten the mood. What I had just told him wasn't good news. "Eddie, I'll be grateful if Latte survives this journey with all her extremities intact."

Adrian snorted at my words and even Eddie cracked a smile.

"Really, Sage? What would the steering wheel be, then?" Adrian grinned, confident about winning this game.

"Her fingers, obviously."

"Obviously," he grimaced, shaking his head. "What is it with me and crazy girls?" He said the last part of the sentence to himself, and I didn't think he knew I heard. I acted accordingly and just laughed along, as though my stomach wasn't fluttering nervously. What happened earlier had meant something to both of us, but just how much did it mean to him? Did he actually care about what had happened in the same way I did? I couldn't even look at him without my stomach doing nervous flips.

I chastised myself for thinking about Adrian again and tried to think of where to start in this hunt. Going down my mental list of 'detective' questions, I shot out the first one.

"Who would want to take Jill? Any enemies or suspects?"

"People that know she's a royal. But I don't know how they managed to follow us here, unless they knew I was hiding here," Adrian answered, running a hand through his hair nervously.

Suddenly, Eddie took a sharp turn that had me slamming my head against the seat. I hissed in pain and Adrian spun around without a hint of hesitation his hands tilting my chin up and moving my head, clearly surveying any damage.

"Are you okay?" He asked, concerned. I noticed he hadn't removed the tips of his fingers from my cheeks and if they stayed there for much longer, I was at a serious risk of blushing.

I pushed his hand away, ignoring the tingles I felt on contact. He had no right to make me feel like this and then touch me so nonchalantly as though he was fine about it all! I pushed myself back, looking anwher but his hurt face. My stunt there could have saved Jill's life. I gasped as I saw the building to the left of me, "Eddie, turn in here! That's Jill's scarf on the wall!"

Clever Jill. I pushed the door open before the engine had even been cut off and quickly inspected the area, searching for any more clues as to Jill's exact whereabouts or any threats on our rescue mission. Adrian stood slightly to the right of me, his body covering most of my own as though protecting me from whatever we might encounter.

Eddie brought up the rear, his arms full of weapons of various sizes and shapes. I looked at him in bewilderment, but he just shook his head. "What did you think all my bags contained? Food?"

I ignored him and continued my inspection, taking in everything. Somehow, I had the feeling Adrian nor Eddie would think of checking before barging into the building. It was beautiful and romanesque, judging by the curved arch over the door. The windows that decorated it were covered behind bars except for three on the third floor. To attempt entering through there was preposterous and I quickly switched for an alternate method of entering. When I realised I wasn't really getting anywhere by staring at the building, I shared my observations.

"Keep close to the wall. There's a surveillance camera on the east wall but it's pointing in the direction of that door. We'll have to find another possible entrance, because it is probably impossible to enter through that door," I ordered, already walking ahead and acting upon my own words.

"Cellar," Adrian said.

I turned to read his expression, squinting to see him in the receding light, something about his tone suggesting that he was upset about something. He was scowling slightly, hands loose at his sides, but his entire posture screamed anger. I wanted to ask him what was wrong but that wasnt an option so I followed Eddie, who had taken the lead.

Avoiding a fallen branch, I stopped at the part of the wall that had caught my attention. Frowning, I brushed my hand against it, pushing the loose ivy to the side. Like The Secret Garden. The wall was a greyish hue as opposed to the brown its surrounding wall had taken which made no sense. The ivy growing over it meant that this wall should be more weak and eroded due to the excess moisture, but instead it felt almost...manmade.

"Adrian. Come here. Does this wall seem funny to you?"

"In what way?" He said, his face shifting in confusion. "Oh."

I pushed against it again. There must be a knack to it, it was just finding out exactly where the weak spot... there. A part of the wall that sounded more wooden than the others caught my attention; the rest had sounded hollow after tapping it, but over here, it was almost like there was a lock.

Voilà.

It slid to the side, revealing a dingy passageway, narrow and cramped. The walls were slick with water indicating that there was a leak somewhere. I covered my nose as the putrid odour of old perspiration hit me; someone had clearly been here before us, but quote a while earlier. We weren't going to bump into anyone.

Allowing Eddie to go first, I crept in cautiously, almost afraid to breathe in fear someone would hear me. Even the slightest sound sounded loud as everything reverberated around the empty passage. It couldn't even be called a corridor, and I found myself pushing against the walls. Was it just me, or was the space getting tighter? Adrian grunted behind and I almost collapsed in relief; it wasn't just me. He clearly had a larger problem, being several inches taller than me. Taking a risk, I whispered, "Adrian, you'll be fine. We're nearly at the end anyway."

Eddie tossed me a lighter which I caught reflexively, glad that it hadn't dropped to the floor. Flicking it open, I saw the passage had widened and split into a fork. Was this just a dream or was my life just horribly clichéd like a movie? The middle one seemed to go on forever and I stepped forward to explore them closer. I had been wrong. The middle passage had been blocked off completely and there was no way anyone could get through the debris that was scattered around.

Left.

After looking over my shoulder one last time, I took the path less travelled on, like in the poem. Though both paths had been equally worn, which was db another likeness to the poem.

_Sydney, breathe. You're going to be fine. It's not your fault Jill is here in the first place, so get a grip. If you don't save her, not only will your life be ruined, but Eddie and Adrian will hate you forever. So relax._

I took my own advice and exhaled, waving the flame in front of me to ensure I didn't fall.. And walked right back into a room identical the one I had just exited. Eddie looked over at me and even in the flickering light, I could see how freaked out he was by this place too.

Adrian was nowhere to be seen. Again, it had branched out into tow corridors and I wondered if they both lead to the same place, like this one just had. A distant sound caught my attention and I froze. The voice was distinctly feminine and I recognized it easily. Eddie's face contorted in pain before his mask was smoothly back in place. The screams came again, and I walked over to the left one again, showing that that was where the noise was coming from.

A hand clenched around my heart and stopped me from speaking. How could I speak to Eddie, how could I even look at him when I was the reason Jill was suffering?

This was all my fault. I had lost attention for a few seconds, and now she was threatened. A hand clamped down on my shoulder and I nearly screamed.

"Shh, it's only me. I came to make sure you're not going to do anything stupid," Adrian said quietly.

Although we were currently in a crisis, his close proximity still made me shiver.

"Like I would do something stupid," I scoffed. "Take your own advice, Adrian."

"Which is why you nearly screamed," he said, deadpan.

"Really? This isn't the time, Adrian! Have your domestic later!" Eddie whisper-shouted.

Jill's screams were more clearer now and it was definitely coming from the left corridor. Gesturing for us to follow, Eddie took the lead up. The walls were damp and the smell clogged my nose; I was sure the dirt was leaving a physical imprint on my shirt.

I had been too busy cringing in disgust to notice the step in front of me, and tripped headfirst... or would have if Adrian hadn't caught me.

My heart fluttered in my chest and Adrian's grip on me tightened momentarily before he pushed me forward slightly. We needed to keep moving. There was no doubt about it. So why couldn't I stop thinking about the fact that Adrian's hands were still on my arms as he propelled me forward. I should only be thinking about saving Jill, yet Adrian still managed to creep into my thoughts.

See, I _was_ selfish.

**I hope you liked it! A scene like this isn't anything like I've really done before, so I'm sorry if it was shit. I will try and improve, so constructive criticism is allowed!**

**I updated within a week just for all my fans, readers, reviewers, favouriters, and followers! You have no idea how much every single one of you matter, you are the only reason I am still writing on this site for you! **

**I love you all so much!**

**CherrySlushLover**

**Xxx**


	12. Chapter 12: Going Camping

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to the awesome SPFKLover for always reviewing your thoughts honestly. I appreciate all your comments because I know you will tell me if something didn't make sense or if I could have improved. And to answer your question: Jill was talking to Sydney when she started acting weird and Sydney blames herself for not seeing the signs, because that was obviously around the time she was kidnapped. Jill and Adrian are cousins, like in Bloodlines! Thank you so much for your reviews; I hope you continue to enjoy it! :D**

**For KyKat: I have hinted at who is after the royals in this chapter; let me know if you get it! Thank you for your review! :***

**DoughnutsForever: The chapter you have been awaiting is finally here! Enjoy! ;D ;D xxxxxx**

**And of course, my lovely friend, Hopper Ivashkinator: I hope the homework is going well and I'm missing you, but don't you DARE abandon your homework like I am currently doing! I hope you enjoy the chapter whenever! xxxxxx**

**I somehow get the feeling you're going to enjoy this chapter! 3**

**Disclaimer: I own the plot! :)**

Getting next to no sleep wasn't the best thing for my concentration. I could feel my eyelids shutting of their own accord and it was only Adrian's arm around me that was keeping me grounded. I felt myself giving in to the dreamless pit that sleep offered when a sudden sharp wind slapped across my face, the clear indication that someone had just walked in.

Someone unwelcome.

"What the hell are you doing here, Belikov?" Adrian snarled at the newcomer.

My eyes flashed open as I took in all 6ft something of the Russian I had seen accompanying Rose two weeks ago. He seemed to be alone and from our crouching position, he (I think he was called Dimitri) looked like even more of a giant. No wonder Adrian had stood up suddenly. The tension between them was almost visible but it was clear that while Adrian, the smaller of the two, was spoiling for a fight, Dimitri was doing his best to avoid one.

"I'm here to save the princess, Adrian, as my job tells me to do. But you are already here." Dimitri's voice was calm even though Adrian looked like he was about to rip his head off. I felt myself wanting to reach out to Adrian to stop him hurting, to stop that look in his eyes, to take away the anger he felt. But that was impossible for just me to do.

Wait, Jill was a princess?

"Yes, we're here. We don't need you, or Roza," he mimicked.

I nudged Adrian slightly to catch his attention and hopefully diffuse the situation slightly by asking him a question. "Jill is a princess?"

Okay, maybe it wasn't the best question to ask, but at least Adrian didn't look as angry when he answered me.

"It's not what you're thinking, Sage. Jill is my cousin. I'll explain my family tree later," he smirked.

His eyes seemed to melt as he looked at me and nearly all traces of anger had been gone to be replaced by another emotion I couldn't quite understand. I gulped discreetly as his eyes unravelled my ever thought; I was getting lost in that never ending sea of green. His pupils had dilated so much that the green had almost disappeared-wait, what was dilation a sign of?

I knew the answer, it just didn't come to me quick enough. My first answer was love or lust but obviously that didn't make sense.

"Sage, you shouldn't have come with us," he whispered suddenly.

His abrupt words broke the spell and I retaliated immediately; how dare he tell me what I should and shouldn't have done?

My defiant expression must have made him backtrack, because he immediately took back his words. "I just mean that it might get dangerous, and I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

The small bubble we had created for ourselves suddenly burst as Dimitri interrupted. "Maybe you _should_ take her back."

"Don't try to interfere with this too! Haven't you done enough harm already?"

Dimitri, who had an amazing ability of hiding his emotions, visibly flinched at Adrian's words and I had a feeling this was the one time he had gone too far.

Apparently, Eddie agreed with me. "I think Dimitri's right this once. You would never forgive yourself if something happened to Sydney. And neither would Jill. We should be able to get her out; we've done it enough times in the past. And it'll be easier for us if we didn't have to watch out for you too. "

"I can look after myself," Adrian hissed, but I knew the battle was already nearly won.

I held my hand out for his and after looking down at it perplexed for a few moments, he took it as though we had never held hands before. The ever present tingles were still shooting up my arm but it was bearable. I wasn't sure if I would've been able to handle it if he had.

I could see him wavering and jumping at the chance to get me out of here, and I nodded with Eddie and Dimitri. Much as I hated to admit it, they were right and I was way in over my head. Jill's safety was the most important thing and Eddie, as Jill's guardian, knew what was best for her. Maybe the best thing was to just leave; I didn't want anything bad to happen to Jill because of me and I didn't really think I would be much of an asset to the group anyway.

"Your parents must be wondering where you are too," Eddie added.

"I said I was with a friend." I know- what an infallible excuse. But I couldn't have said I was with Adrian; my mum would have been elated at that fact, but as Zoe knew the truth about him, I couldn't use that.

"What friends?" Eddie said wryly. "Did you offer a name that they know?"

If I was the blushing sort of person, I would be scarlet by now. I had given them a name: Brayden. He was the only person I could think of that my parents wouldn't mind me staying with and as he had a sister my age, I was allowed to go over, a fact that was a constant thorn in Trey's side, whose house I had never been to. Apparently, all the 'battle scars' he had made my dad cautious about sending me to his house as much as I had tried to convince him that Trey's scars had been inflicted by football.

Adrian was still looking at me for an answer so I nodded at him, hoping he would leave it at that. No such luck.

"Who?" he asked.

I had a feeling that Brayden wasn't exactly in Adrian's good books so I said the next thing that popped into my head. "Angeline. You wouldn't know her; she's quite popular for people who have been here for a while but I don't think you've been that well acquainted with everyone yet."

It was a low blow but at least that line of questioning had stopped. After several more useless arguments, Adrian gave in even though that had been inevitable. He knew that going would be the best thing for Jill even though waiting for information would be torturous.

We left Eddie and Dimitri outside the door still waiting for the guard to come out. Both looked ready to kill and I doubted they would relax from their positions until they got Jill out of there alive and well. We had been lucky to find out where she was being held captive for so long and I had several images of the star sign that had been tattooed all over the walls. It clearly stood for something and I had seen that symbol before; I just couldn't remember where. Eddie had encouraged me to research that and convinced me that it would help more than staying with them would.

Facts had always been more my forte anyway.

Getting out was surprisingly easier than entering the decrepit old building and we were safely in Latte within minutes of deciding to leave. I immediately checked my phone for reception; I had no bars. Adrian did the same to find his battery had completely died. I guess we would just have to find our way home the old-fashioned way. Throwing Adrian the map I kept in my backseat, I told him to read out instructions. He looked at me blankly.

"Adrian, you do know how to read a map, right?" I said worriedly. Would I have to let him drive whilst I navigated?

"Of course I do," he scowled. "But do you honestly want me to let you drive?"

"Latte is my car, Adrian. There is no way you're driving her."

"Oh, really?" He waggled his eyebrows at me and I averted my gaze as though I had said something wrong. Why did he make everything seem like an innuendo? I was pretty sure that hadn't even been one!

I drove in relative silence with Adrian occasionally pointing out a turn but mostly he just watched me. I felt slightly nervous under his careful scrutiny as though I was supposed to say something or do something, but I didn't know what. Right on cue, my stomach rumbled and Adrian laughed breaking the slight tension that had escalated.

"I guess we need to make a stop to some place that sells coffee," he smirked.

After making another few turns that Adrian swore were right, I realised something dreadful. I didn't recognise where we were. The roads all seemed the same and so did the woods around me. A rising sense of panic enveloped me and I could feel myself quivering slightly. Oh God, this couldn't be happening now. Please, not in front of Adrian. Leaning my head shakily between my knees, I took a deep breath trying to get my heart rate back under control. I was lifted out of my seat suddenly, warm arms wrapping around my body. The familiar smell of cigarettes and cologne enveloped me and as I inhaled the scent, I could feel myself automatically calm down. Though my heart rate sped up. It most definitely didn't help that Adrian was whispering calming words in my ear, which were having the total opposite effect on me.

Wait, I was sat in his lap. And I was enjoying it. And Adrian didn't look like he had any complaints either.

But Jill was missing. This was wrong. I pushed away from him slightly and pushed the door open, not once breaking eye contact though I desperately wanted to. The fresh air helped calm my nerves slightly and even Adrian seemed slightly shaken up. Looking around I remembered the predicament we were in, considering we had no phones, no food, and absolutely no one to ask for help. The place was deserted and only then did I realise something stranger. Why was there trees here? I didn't remember any trees on the way there!

Grabbing the map out of Adrian's startled hands, I located the tiny blotch of green in the south east corner, meaning we were about 70 miles from where we were supposed to be. The dwindling light meant that it was too dangerous to even attempt to find out way back and I waved goodbye to the light, hoping it would return soon. Adrian appeared at my shoulder sometime during my silent plea for help and I turned to see him carrying a rather odd looking bundle his hands along with a backpack.

The tent and food I had packed. But if it was here, that meant...

"Eddie has no food and neither does Jill."

"Relax, Sage. Knowing Belikov, he's got an entire truck full of supplies hidden up his shirt or something. Don't even get me started on-" he cut off suddenly, his lips clamping together tightly.

Rose. He had been about to say Rose.

I tried to ignore the way my heart twisted in envy at the mention of her name because those feelings of jealousy I was getting were totally irrational. Which was I ignored them. Looking back at the woods, I shuddered at the thought of having to dtay there. Couldn't we just stay in Latte?

"I would rather stay in the tent because it is definitely going to be more comfortable. And I'm not trying to degrade Latte before you accuse me of that!" Adrian laughed, passing me the backpack. If only I had decided to bring clothes but I couldn't have everything. I hated to admit it, but Adrian was right. Sleeping in Latte was not only going to be uncomfortable, but also dangerous. I had no idea what sort of people passed through here or if anyone even did, but I knew it would be less risky if people thought we were just camping out instead of knowing that we were wasn't exactly the kind of car to get stolen, but I still took precautions and climbed into her, driving into the woods. Adrian looked on with raised eyebrows until I realised he needed to get in too.

Pulling the passenger door open, I let him in, grinning slightly at his shocked face. "What, did you think no one would ever forget you?"

"I don't think anyone has ever forgot me before!" he replied, dumbfounded.

"There's a first time for everything."

"Clearly, today is a day of first times. I have never camped or tried to rescue someone other than myself. You're changing me, Sage!"

"As long as I deflate that large head of yours along the way, I'm fine." I parked the car at the edge of a clearing, getting out to explore it further.

"Hey, I have a perfectly normal sized head!"

I laughed and shook my head at his response; didn't he know that I meant it figuratively? Locking Latte, I started walking into the clearing. From the way the ground was considerably flattened compared to the surrounding are, I assumed we weren't the first people to use the area as a camping site. I dropped the bag to the floor and rifled quickly through it, looking for the bottles of water. Taking a quick gulp, I passed it to Adrian who just looked at it incredulously.

"I don't get my own water bottle?"

"We're trying to ration, Adrian, and I didn't think you'd mind," I said, busying myself with the fold of the tent to cover my face. My head was buzzing slightly and I wished I had some Tylenol but that was the one thing I'd forgotten. The sound of Adrian chugging water made me spin around and I smirked at the view of him gulping it as though he was a dying man in a desert. I was surprised he hadn't dropped it over himself in his enthusiasm.

"Rationing, Adrian, doesn't mean finishing the entire bottle."

"And skimming over instructions doesn't mean you're actually reading them. Relax, I've got this one." He took the instructions out of my hand, ignoring my protests. I had never set up a tent before but following instructions came as a second nature; I somehow didn't think Adrian enjoyed following instructions.

"Sage, it's just like art. Honestly, I've got this."

I had no idea why he was so adamant on proving that his hands did, in fact, do manual labour, but the best thing to do was just wait and let him learn from his mistakes. Or so I thought.

Half an hour later, a perfect tent had been erected. But it was a little on the small side.

Oops.

_What the hell am I going to do? Am I really honestly going to be sleeping that close to Adrian?_

Adrian looked like he was thinking the exact same thing. I smiled at him weakly and patted his back. "Congratulations. I shouldn't have doubted you."

"You never doubt me, Sage," he said lightly, but I had a feeling hi words meant a lot more than he was trying to make out.

"So- we'll eat, and then wait for news?" I said, suddenly hesitant.

"Sounds like a plan."

"Well, we've got a choice of many michelin starred dishes and there's three courses. Take your pick."

"Was that an attempt at sarcasm, Sage? Maybe my awesomeness is rubbing off on you!" He sounded elated at this and I looked at him between pulling out the fruit container and some packets of crisps.

"Maybe I should spend less time with you then, Adrian. Because you're clearly a bad influence," I said, smiling slightly to myself.

It was so easy with Adrian, like minute everything would be silent and then he'd just come out with something that automatically initiated a response in me, and thus the bantering started. I could be myself with him and not be afraid of being judged. I didn't want anything to ever ruin that; it was like I could finally talk to someone... properly. Not members of my family, or friends like Trey- Adrian was in a group all of his own and he did the job of everyone. He was there for him and made me laugh at the same time. I couldn't say the same for anyone else.

We ate in relative silence after that, enjoying the peace of the starless night. I lay back for a while on a spare blanket and just lay back looking at the endless sky.

"It's weird, isn't it? That the sky in Sweden in America is one and the same. The feelings I have in both places are so different. It's like this is a new start for me, Sage. Like no one here cares about my past," he whispered and turned to his side to face me. it was almost like we didn't want to break the calm that had penetrated our lives at that moment and even the slightest sound would disrupt it. I nodded at him whilst my heart jolted at the thought of him wanting to return to Sweden.

I didn't want him to leave.

"Sage, shall we go to bed now? I mean, go to sleep seeing as we have no proper bed?" He smiled slightly at his error and pushed himself up. I followed suit and took his offered hand, using it to pull myself up.

He probably overestimated my weight (though I'm not sure how) and used too much force to pull me up; I ended up flush with his chest. To stop myself from hurting myself, I had reflexively thrown my arms out and fisted my hand in his hoodie. Adrian's hands were wrapped around mine and a slow flush worked itself up within me. I couldn't bring myself to look at him as I pulled myself away and entered the tent.

After zipping it up after himself, Adrian stood awkwardly until I sat down and tucked the duvet around my legs. I would've thought he would be more comfortable with the situation than me, but clearly not. Finally, we were side by side, when I noticed something awful. Adrian had no blanket. SLowly, I took mine and pushed it around him. He took over and soon we were cocooned into our own little world. My muscles were tensed up and I was unable to relax.

After checking my phone again for any messages, I turned away from Adrian and closed my eyes. Eddie had let us know that they would ring with any news but it didn't stop me worrying. At least I had a tracker on Latte in case it ever got stolen.

I could feel Adrian's breath on the back of my neck as he exhaled, goosebumps appearing at his touch.

"Goodnight, Adrian."

"Sweet dreams."

_Oh, I'm sure they will be._

* * *

I snuggled into my pillow, relishing in its warmth. I had never thought a pillow could smell so good; it's scent was very close to... oh God, Adrian's cologne.

Scrambling up, I looked in horror at Adrian who just smirked up at me, obviously amused at the fact I had been so close to him. Muttering a quick 'morning', I hurried out of the tent, grabbing my toothbrush on my way. I breathed a sigh of relief that I had actually thought of bringing one. Unfortunately, I hadn't brought a change of clothes because that would have meant going home and explaining everything to my parents, which I was desperately hoping to avoid. So, I just pulled off the top I had wore to bed and exchanged it fo my slightly wrinkled blouse. It would have to do.

Adrian was up by the time I reappeared, looking as amazing as ever in a tight-fitting navy blue t-shirt that he had probably had stuffed into his bag, judging by the increased amount of creases on it.

The reason why we were here suddenly came to me and I cursed myself for being so forgetful. How could I have forgotten something like that?

"Wait, any news on Jill?"

Adrian's smile was dazzling.

"They've got her safe and apparently, they can track us to where we are because a little clever person installed a tracker in her car."

"I'm not clever, Adrian!" I argued.

"Yes, you are. You're the most amazing person I have ever met." No, he couldn't say something like that and mean it in the same way I was interpreting it.

"Adrian..." _Please mean it._

"No, Sydney. Let me just say this. I finally have a place I feel I belong and it's all because of you. You don't even know how brightly you burn, but instead of destroying everything in your path, you light it all up. And sometimes, I look at you and can't even believe my luck at having found someone like you. And sometimes, you're so close, and all I want to do is just tell you how much you mean to me."

"Are you drunk?" I asked bluntly. I didn't want to read too much into what he was saying only to get my hopes shattered.

He laughed uproariously but slowly grew serious, and looked at me as though I was the only one that mattered to him...the only one that would ever matter to him. He walked towards me, looking strong and determined. I couldn't move, as though I was entranced like a snake to its charmer.

Tilting my chin up, he murmured, "Please, Sydney."

But I had already touched my lips to his, unable to wait for any longer. The taste of him against me was better than I had ever imagined, and I twined my fingers in the locks of his hair, tugging him closer to me. I had never been so brave before but with Adrian, I couldn't seem to keep my walls up no matter how hard I tied. He cupped my neck whilst his other hand trailed a path down my arm to finally rest around my waist. Slowly, agonisingly, his tongue trailed my lower lip, asking- no, begging- for entrance which I gave gladly. I groaned as he explored the inside of my mouth, as his hands roamed my body as though trying to memorise every curve.

Pulling away, I cursed my breathing for being so laboured but it looked like Adrian was in the same state. I licked my bottom lip, savouring the lingering taste of Adrian, and watched as Adrian's eyes followed the movement hungrily. I did it again, testing, and got the same reaction. Smirking, I looked up at him. "Tease," he muttered, but I was unable to give a response as his lips captured mine in another indescribable kiss.

"Eddie, you owe me ten dollars."

I pushed away from Adrian at the sudden sound of a voice, my heart thumping away in my chest. What the hell had I just done? And who had been there to witness it?

**A/N: FINALLY! A SYDRIAN KISS!**

**And what about that interruption? ;P**

**Thank you to Spaztranaut for your suggestion; I used it! :D It was a good idea!**

**Thank you for being patient and I really hope it was worth it! So, any thoughts? Comments, questions, criticism, anything allowed, and of course there's a sneak peek for any new reviewers, favouriters, or followers! I love you all so much!**

**Next chapter dedication for whoever's review makes me the happiest, and trust me, it doesn't take a lot! :D**

**Thank you again for sticking with me! **

**CherrySlushLover**

**xxx**


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